The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1906-10-18
CURLING THE POWER OF CORPORATIONS
A PROBLEM IN AMERICAN POLITICS
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT POINTS OUT CHARACTER OF The
CONTEST NOW ENGAGING AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Regulation Big corporatonsJuste
Through Republican Part
eralC

eral {
| President Roosevelt delivered q notable
| address at the dedication Of the new
| Pennsylvania State house, in which he
| discussed anew some Of the question con-
| corning which he has said much and done
much In recent years. Among other
| things he said:
do not come hero to speak only Of the
past. and still less to appeal merely to
| state PRIDE We can show that tho past
| is with US q living force only In tbs way
present. and each Of us can best show his
devotion to his own state by making evil
dent his paramount devotion to that I'm
ion which includes al the states The
chief avail in so far as 1t incites us to
grapple resolutely and effectively with the
problems Of the present. We are not now
firmly established. But each generation
has its special and serious difficulties;
and we Of this generation have to strus-
material success Of which We are so
psrity Of witch. with Justice. We boast:
the last half century have produced
| totally new set Of conditions. under which
| new evils flourish: and for these new evils
new remedies must be devised
Need Of Greater Federal PowerA
Some Of these evils can DO grappled
with by private effort only; for We never
can afford to forget that in the last analy-
and indeed in national greatness. must
be the sturdy self reliant character of
| the individual citizen. But many Of these
effort can avail against them. These evils
therefore. must be grappled with by gov
ernmenta! action. In some cases this gov
ernmental action must be exercised by
the several states individually. In yet
| others 1t has become Increasingly evident
that no efficient state action is possible,
and that We need through executive 40
dicial Interpretation and construction of
| law to increase the power Of the federal
| government.
our impotence and leave ourselves at the
| mercy of those ingenious legal advisers
| OF the holders OF vast corporate wealth.
| who. in the performance of what they re-
gard as their duty. and to serve the ends
| OF their clients, invoke tho law at one
time for the confounding Of their rivals,
f1cation, OF the law in order that they
themselves may be left free to work their
4 unbridled will on these same rivals, or
on those who labor for them. or on the
general public.
Tricks Of Corporation Men.
In. the exercise Of their profession and
in the service Of their clients these astute
| lawyers strive to prevent the passage OF
efficient laws and strive to secure judicial
determinations OF those that pass which
| woke the constitution In order to compel
the due observance Of law alike by rich
and poor, by great and small: on the con-
to cry out that the constitution is vio-
lated whenever any effort Is made to In
woke the aid Of the national government,
tor for the h. esens
great corporations. or for efficiently Sc
curing obedience to such law as tho ma
tional eight-hour law and similar 80
called Tabor statutes"
The doctrine they preach would make
the constitution merely the shield of In
competence and the excuse for govern
mental paralysis; they treat 1t as JUS
tiication for refusing to attempt the rem
edy OF evil. instead Of as the source of
vital power necessary for the existence
Strong nationalist though I am, and
firm though my belief is that there must
be a wide extension of the power Of the
1ans "a to deal With
regards many matters OF first rate Inn
portance we must rely purely upon the
states for the betterment of present con-
ditions. The several states must do their
duty or our citizenship can never be put
on proper plane.
State Reforms Good.
President Roosevelt here turned to mat
tiers Of state legislation in Pennsylvania
and congratulated the people of that state
on their legislature having done so much.
FTe especially mentioned the passage Of a
primary election law (which guarantees
to the voters free expression in the Sc
lection of candidates for office" and fin
ally he said:
You have passed a law containing a pro-
vision which / most earnestly hope will
in substance be embodied likewise in a
Ia pfoSEsion brohibitihg e the Officers ssssi9 Of
any corporation from making contribl-
ton of the money of that corporation to
any candidate or any political committee
for the payment Of any election expenses
whatever.
President Roosevelt also compllmented
Pennsylvania on having secured child
labor law and expressed the hope that
congress would do something along the
same line. Continuing he spoke of the
doctrines as taught by Justice Wilson
of Pennsylvania. and said:
In a remarkable letter in which he adj
vocated setting forth in early and clear
fashion the powers of the national gov
that 1t should be made clear that there
We're neither vacancies nor interverences
!, between the limits of state and national
jurisdiction, and that both Jurisdictions
together composed only one uniform and
comprehensive system Of government and
laws: that is. whenever the states cannot
act, because the need to be met Is not
national government. representing ali the
people. should have complete ROVER to
act. 1t was in the spirit Of Wilson that
Washington. and Washington's ueutenan nj
Hamilton, acted; and it was In the same
spirit that Marshall construed the law.
Big Fortunes Must Be Controlled.
) All honest men must abhor and repro.
bate any effort to excite hostility to mer
of wealth as such. We should do all We
can to encourage thrift and business en-.
IN AT av1,,ay N{,,,S.
of the man who honestly earns his liyel.
hood and more than his livelihood. am
who honestly uses the money he has
earned But it is our clear duty to see
in the interest of the people that ther.
is adequate supervision and control oyal
the business use of the swollen fortunes
of today, and also wisely to determine
the conditions upon which these fortunes
are to be transmitted and the percentage
that they shall pay TO the government
. whose protecting arm alone enables Their
IL 70 01l CT LIZ l,oAa H. 5,