Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-09-27

ing the campaign in Chicago spoke in
part as follows:
The peoples government should do
no business that the people can do bet.
Ger themselves; the peoples govern
ment should own no business that the
people can better own themselves.
But the peoples government should
control and regulate industries owned
by some of the people that are so great
as to affect the welfare of all of the
people.
"The people, through their govern
ment, should not permit some of them
to practice business methods that will
be unjust to all of them But the peo-
pies government should not own any
industry which private enterprise can
efficiently manage and whose abuses
government regulation can prevent
Government ownership of nation
wide business is the European theory
of industry. Government regulation of
nation wide business is the American
theory of industry. am for the Amer
lean theory and against the European
theory. Let Europe copy America, not
American copy Europe. Government
control Of railways. but not govern
ment ownership Of railways
Corporations Public Servants.
$50 long as the managers of these
mighty corporations manage them as
and whose money Is invested in them,
government control is not needed; but
when these managers treat their trusts
as their private affairs, to be conduct
ed for their individual profit alone and
| NJ ole To- hn Of
government regulation is needed
ment destruction; government but not
government ownership unless govern
ment regulation fails.
"And government regulation will not
fail if these captains Of industry do
their duty. Government regulation
will never be felt by the managers Of
great business enterprises who con-
duct business as trustees of the peo-
pie, just as criminal lawyers are not
felt by the citizen who attends to his
duties of citizenship. Liberty is real
lied only by him who obeys those COM
mon rules of action called laws. by
which alone liberty lives.
/ Regulation Development.
Gust as the organization Of Ameri-
can industries developed out Of
changed conditions so the principles
of government regulation develops out
of the action of these organizations
themselves.
Gust as the old methods Of private
business would be utterly inadequate
2 in the new condition, so the old princi-
pie of arbitrary private management
is utterly In applicable to the new
methods.
"And so 1t Is that the new principle
; of regulation by the government of all
the people, over business SO great that
it affects all the people, has developed
from the same causes that produced
those great businesses themselves.
People Should Have Voice.
"The throat of one shipper should
mot be cut and his blood given to anoth
err shipper; and this cannot be left tc
the railroad manager alone because
his immediate purpose is the largest
profits and he might find greater pro
fits in treating one shipper better thar
others, as witness the fact disclosed
by the investigation of the Pennsyl
vania railroad.
at ought not to be left to the rail
1 road managers exclusively because
4 they might be coerced by powerful
4 shippers to treat unfairly shippers who
e were less powerful as witness the
coercion of railways by the STANDARD
!, OIL company, the beef trust, and othel
: powerful concerns.
4 Therefore 1t becomes necessary tina
: the people whose savings are invested
in these railways; the people from
s whom the railways derive the reven
a ues: the people whom the railways
n serve and who serve the railway:
o should have a voice in their manage
ment. So it is necessary that the rail
q ways whose rates are a tax upon al
the people, whose operation directl.
e affects all the people, should be con
y trolled and regulated by the govern
ment of all the people.
! Reasons for the Rate Law.
il "This is the reason for the railwa.
rate law passed by the present con
q gress.
That law may not be effective a
/" the beginning; and that is not impo1
tant. for it will be effective in the END
: The important thing is that for tn
r first time in our history the raj
n way rate law puts into practical opera
/. ton the principle of government COZ
: troll Of railways.
"And that is the only way law
T should develop. Laws that are mer
!, creations are not beneficent, seldor
: workable. But laws that are develop
n ments from changing conditions, law
:, that are written by the wisdom of e1
It perience, are always beneficial
= American Ways for Americans.
d "Such is the philosophy of the go,
) ernments control and supervision G
i railways We have begun the applics
:. ton Of that principle, begun 1t becaus
q the American people demanded it.
4. "And they demanded it because the
v needed it. And now that we have b.
gun it, let us give it an exhaustiv
IS trial Why talk Of government ownel
ship when government regulation ha
!. only begun? Why fly to the Europea
u u theory, born Of European conditions
. . when the American theory has jus