Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-12-11

JUSTICE
justice of the matters in dispute The ex-
ercise OF judicial spirit by a disinter
ested body representing the Federal gov
eminent, such as would be provided by
commission on Cancellation and arbitration.
would tend TO create an atmosphere of
friendliness and Cancellation between CON
tending parties and the giving each side
an equal opportunity to present fully its
case in the presence of the other would
prevent many disputes from developing into
serious strikes or lockOuts and, in other
cases, would enable the commission TO per-
suade the opposing parties to come to
terms.
Withdrawal of Coal Lands
1t is not wise that the nation should
ALLEVIATE its remaining coal lands. have
temporarily withdrawn from settlement all
the lands which the geological survey has
indicated as containing, or in all probable
ity containing, coal. The question, how
ever, can be properly settled only by legls-
lation, which in my judgment should pro-
vide for the withdrawal Of these lands from
sale or from entry, save in certain especial
circumstances. The ownership would then
remain in the United States, WHEN should
not, however, attempt to Work them, Dut
permit them to be worked by private indi-
viduals under a royalty system,
Control Of Corporations.
The present Congress has taken long
strides in the direction of securing proper
supervision and control by the national
government over corporations engaged In
! Interstate business-and the enormous ma
jority of corporations of any size are en-
gagged in interstate business. The passage
of the railway rate bill, and only to less
degree the passage Of the pure food bill,
and the provision for increasing and rem
derIng more effective national control over
the beef-packing industry, mark an import
ant advance in the proper direction. All
these laws have already justified their en-
actment. 1t must not be supposed, how
ever, that with the passage of these laws
1t will be possible to stop progress along
the line of increasing the power of the
national government over the use of capital
in interstate commerce. For example, there
will ultimately be need of enlarging the pow
ers of the interstate commerce commission
along several different lines, so as to give
it larger and more efficient control over
the railroads.
perience has concusively shown the impos
sbility of securing by the actions of nearly
half hundred different State Legislatures
anything but Ineffective chaos in the way
which do not operate exclusively within
the limits of any State. In some
methods, whether by a national license law
or in other fashion, we must exercise and
that at early date, far more complete
control than at present over these great
corporations-a control that will among
other things prevent the evils of excessive
over-capitaliZation, and that will compel
the disclosure by each big corporation of
its stockholders and of its properties and
business, whether owned directly or through
subsidiary or affiliated corporations. This
will tend to put a stop to the securing or
inordinate profits by favored individuals at
the expense whether of the general public,
the stockholders or the wageworkerS. Our
effort should be not so much to prevent con-
solidation as such, but so to supervise and
control it as to see that it, results in no
harm to the people.
SO the proper antidote TO the dangerous
and wicked agitation against the men of
wealth such is to secure by proper legis-
latiOn and executive action the abolition
of the grave abuses which actually do obtain
in connection with the business use Of
wealth under our present system--or rath
er no system-of failure to exercise any ad
equate control at all. Some persons speak
as if the exercise of such governmental
control would do away with the freedom
of individual initiative and dwarf individ-
ual effort. This is not fact. 1t would
be a veritable calamity to fail to put q
premium upon individual initiative, indvid-
ula capacity and effort; upon the energy,
character and foresight which it is i'm
portant to encourage in the individual. But
as matter of fact the deadening and de
grading effect of pure socialism, and the de
structiOn of individual character winch they
would bring about are in part achieved by
the wholly unregulated competition which
results in a single individual corporation
rising at the expense of all others until
his or its rise effectually checks all COM
petition and reduces former competitors to
a position of utter inferiority and subor-
dination.
ton as this Congress already has to its
credit we are working on coherent plan,
with the steady endeavor to secure the
needed reform by the joint action of the
moderate men, the plain men who do not
wish anything historical or dangerous. but
who do intend TO deal in resolute common
sense fashion with the real and great evils
of the present system. The reactionaries
and the violent extremists show symptoms
of Joining hands against us. Both assert
for instance that if logical. we should go
to government ownership OF railroads ana
the like the reactlonaries, because on such
an issue they think the people would stand
with them, while the extremists care rather
to preach discomfort and agitation than 10
achieve solid results. As a matter of fact,
our position is as remote from that of the
Bourbon reactionary as from that OF the
impra cticable or sinister visionary we hold
that the government should not conduct
the business of the nation. but that II
should exercise such supervision as will in
sure its being conducted in the interest OF
the nation. Our aim Is, so FAR as may pc
to secure, for all decent. hard-working men,
equality Of opportunity and equality OF bur
den.
The actual working of our laws has
shown that the effort to prohibit all com
bination, good or bad, is obnoxious where II
is not effective Combination of capital,
like combination of labor, Is a necessary
element of our present lndustrlal system
1t is not possible completely to prevent II f;
and If ii were possible, such complete pre-
vention would do damage to the body poll
tic What we need is not valnIy 10 Try TO
prevent all combination, but TO secure such
rigorous and ADEQUATE control and supervis-
ion of the combinations as TO prevent thelr
iniuring the public, or existing IN such form
as inevitably to threaten inJury-for the
mere fact that combination mas secured
racticalIy c0Urpfcte control OF necessary
of life would under any circumstances snow
that such combination was to be presumed
to be adverse to the public interest; IL Is I'M
fortunate that our present laws should for
bid all combinations instead of sharply DIS
eliminating between those conblnatiohs
which do good and those combinations when
do evil Rebates, for instance, are as oIteh
dine to the pressure of big shippers tas was
shown in the investigaU zion of the standard
Oil Company and as has been SHOWN since
by the investigation of the TOBACCO ana
sugar tr,stsl as to the initiative of big
railroads Often railroads would ike 10
combine for the purpose of preventing DIG
shipper from maintaining improper adVant-
ages Mt the expense of small shippers ana
of the general public. Such eomblna-
tiop instead of being forbidden by law.
should be favored. In other words, 1t should
be permitted to railroads TO make agree
ments provided these agreements were sane
Toned by the interstate commerce commits
sion and wre published. With these two
conditions complied with il is impossible to
see what harm such combination could
do to the public at large
Inheritance and Income Tax.
The national government has long derived
md from an internal or excise tax. In adj |
dition to these there is every reason why |
when next our system of taxation is revised |
the national government should impose q
graduated Inheritance tax. and. ii posi- |
BE. a graduated income tax The man Of
great wealth owes peculiar obligation to
the State. because he derives special ddvan- |
t0~es from the mere existence OF govern |
ment. Not only should he recognize this |
obligation in the way he leads his daily |
life and in the way he earns and spends |
dis money, but 1t should also be recognized |
hv the way in which he pays for the protec
ton the State gives him, or the one hand |
it is desirable that he should assume his
fnll and proner share Of the burden of tax
alton on the other hand. it is quite as
necessary that in this kind Of taxation |
where the men who vote the tax pay but |
little of it. there should be clear reeogni- !
ton OF the danger Of inaugurating any
such system save in spirit Of entire jus
tice and moderation. Whenever we, IS q
people undertake. to remodel our taxation !
system along the lines suggested we must |