The Mena weekly star., 1906-12-06

representing the 1eueIaa a commits
 stnn m conciliation ana .otars nf
 would tend to create an a,poan a,Inosp con-
 friendlIness and conciliatlon pe.wsc sscb aide tending parties: anu tue ,e eresent fully it's @ on s tn inc presence of the otner ;a, wo ,ravent many disputes from ueseioasi es,,sa i5 Into serious strikes or h3e lIeh1he9 the commis- on,,S' o,on to persuade the opposing pareios Y
 Tn this age of great corporaale llae,a.S a.u nor hor combinations, neither einpioiy ep,uisss1v v at n'.a,,Ioy.aas poi should be left compisteiy a' sha mercy of the stronger party to q u'o os n',te regardless of the riEnteousnSerssoo ersosed their respective claims Ihe plupp3ine pos,rios
 s.aeas,,re snea no,Ild be in the line of securing
 raCo1nifion of the fact that m asyt niany
 strikes the public has itsell an sn5. m
 which cannot wisely pc uisIes usd q .o,ven-
 inrca for the question of 1qst ,, anu nroper public policy must aiso ,9s kina
 sidered In all Legislation oL .h 9esting it is well to advance cautiously stan n.ch v. ster nv the actual results; the stsp ep
 nronosed can surely be safely tahe., ,,,,ia inc decisions of the comm ssn'iior and
 not bind the parties in legai ar las n,,hiic opin- ion to exert it's full force for the risn'
 Control of Corporations.
 A considerable portion of the me messase s1s, IS deyo.su " .cseuroorations in what he refers 10
 ,ha ,oi oasssae at the last session or tns
 rate meat inspection and food laWs. ar, aHu
 says that all of these nave a,n a,reco,nn3ends fed their enactment, but recollllalstl3oo
 tha amendrnent of the meat inspe,Seoats law so as to put dates on the Ss ia the
 meat products, and also .o ars rather tbsn on inc government. Continuing ou
 this subject of the control or corpua .''V''7 bv the federal government nc say{hea av
 ,.rt cannot too often be repeated tIal sA- ,arience has conclusively shown tne hut possibility of securing by tne ae.ons "a ppcarly half hundred different stn.e sts..s legislatures anything RgH os dealing edi with the e,reat corporations which do not opeIaee Exclusively within the limits ol any o''
 state In some method, Wneene. aS;on
 ma afional license law or in other iaslioi, we must exercise, and that at an eally y
 date. a far more complete control ..,an .,s,, at present over these great coipVnhslr p.ns, tions-a control that will among ais,a os things prevent the evils of excesslNS5 2 rcapftaIzatioh, and that VIII Solnp.s aip the disclosures by each pig coIpola.i'o.s .s . of it's stockholders and ol IFS spaaitlx pruil oI. and business. whether owned dlrecty ui
 thru subsidiary or affiliated cofpoIa.ion, aas,, 2,
 This will tend to put a stop to tils s.ss,.ts ing of inordinate profts py tsa. af sS inSividuals at the expense whether M oa
 the general public, the stockholders; l pa inc wageworkers. Our effort snoulu W pe moi SO much to prevent consohdaeioh, @.ss
 such. but so to supervise and conuo' q. is
 ss to see that 1t results in no harm eu inc people The reactonary or uleldSotl. servative apologists for the Hllsuse ,,eh wealth assail the effort to secuae . | control as a step toward socialism. As 2 matter of fact ft ia these reactlohaIles | and ultraconseryatives who are thsni- ii l selves most potent in increasing sosisl,,, son,,, | tic feeling One of the most einclehs methods of averting the consequenees ol 1 A dangerous agitation, which IS oV pst cent wrong is to remedy the ~ pel WY VII; ii | of evil as to which the asd.a.9 a.9sr9 inc very undesirable move for the governments. - l ownership of railways IS to sesur .seo,aia | the government on behalf ol ntra1 uny and as a whole such adequate conlfoi aliA | regulation of the great interstate. Svs. VI. 1 mon carriers as will do away st VIII .s,,5 tl.o | evils which give rise to the hslsatlo.' hstsSeta l against them So the proper dntluote l to the dangerous and wicked agles1iVnn n 1 against the men of wealth as sncn & ls .o secure by proper legislation ana eAeSu e 1 five action the abolition or the sItNe | abuses which actually do obtain in con nection with the business use oI Meatsn - a under our present system--or ratltf .'
 system--of failure to exsr,,sr a ,,srsons spea ss if the exercise of such governneI1llmll m control would do away with the iIeSuoi ,i i'
 of individual initiative ana awsld sact A''I If | would be veritable calamity 10 ran 70 | but a premium upon individual lnlttuNe, | individual capacity and efort, upon is Y, energy, character and foreslsht Mh,S. tt, if is so important to encourage Tn tne individual But as a matter or fact tne deadening and degrading enect oI pure
 socialism, and especially or lts 's individual character which they would bring about. are in part achieved py ihs s
 wholly unregulated competition Wulch
 results In a single individual or corpor.
 ation rising at the expense of all others unt,l his or it's rise effectually cnecNs an competition and reduces former rsN'"
 tors to a position of utter inferiority ane ! fya
 Tn enacting and enforcing such legs latlon as this congress already has to iti
 credit we are working on coheTen | plan. with the steady endeavor to secure the needed reform by the Joint action ol the moderate men, the plain men wht do not wish anything hysterical oi dangerous but who do intend to uea m resolute commonsense fashion witt l the real and great evils of the present system The reaetionaries and the vio l lent extremists show symptoms ot Josn sn, | instance that if logical, we should gt | 10 government ownership or railfoaui 1 and the likei the reaetionaries; because | on such an issue they think the people | would stand with them, while the ex' | tremists care rather to preach disconteni l and agitation than to achieve solid re- sults As a matter of fact, our position
 ls as remote from that of the bourbon | reactionary as from that of the impraS- ticable or sinister visionary. We hold
 that the government should not conduct
  should exercise such supervision as VIII Insure it's being conducted in the inter- est of the nation. Our aim is. so far as may be- to secure for all decent, hard working men, equality Of opportunity and
 Examinations are necessary.
 "The actual working of our laws has shown that the effort to prohibit all com bination, good or bad. Is noxious where
 t is not ineffective. Combination of capital like. combination of labor. is a trial system. It is not possible completely to prevent it, and If it were possible, such complete prevention would do dam- age to the body polite. What we need Is not vainly to prevent all combination, but to secure such rigorous and adequate control and supervision of the combina- tions as to prevent their injuring the public, or existing in such form as inev- ltably to threaten injury--for the mere fact that a combination has secured practically complete control of neces- sary of life would under any cireum- stances show that such combination was to be presumed to be adverse to the pulp lie interest It is unfortunate that our present laws should forbid all eombinl- tions instead of sharply discriminating between those combinations which do evil Rebates, for instance, are as often due to the pressure of big shippers Gas was shown In the investigation of tnt Standard oil company and as has beer shown since by the investigation of the tobacco and sugar trusts) as to the initi- ative of big railroads. Often railroads would like to combine for tho purpose ol preventing big shipper from maintain ing improper advantages at the eXpen st of small shippers and of the general pub lie Such a combination, Instead Of beinf forbidden by law, should be favored. iI other words. 1t should be permitted tS railroads to make agreements, provided these agreements were sanctioned by ths interstate commerce commission ane were published With these two condi
 tions compiled with it is impossible |,
 see what harm such a combination conit do to the public at large. 1t Is a public evil to have on the statute books lew incapable of full enforcement because both fudoac and i4ir{ag raaIfya thuf ft,