Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1907-12-13

misdeeds with impnity, their example
is a very evil thing for the community.
Where these men are business men of
great sagacity and of temperament both
INSCRIPTIONS and reckless, and where
the conditions are such that they are
without supervision or control and at first
without effective check from public opin-
ion, they delude many innocent people
into making investments or embarking
in kinds of business that are really I'M
sound When the misdeedS of these sue
cessfully dishonest men are discovered
suffering comes not only upon them, but
upon the innocent men whom they have
mised. 1t is a painful awakening
whenever it occurs; and, naturally, when
it does occur those who suffer are apt
to forget that the longer it was deferred
the more painful it would be. In the
effort to punish the guilty it is both wise
and proper to endeavOr so far as pos
sihle to minimize the distress of those
who have been misled by the guilty. Yet
it is not possible to refrain because OF
such distress from striving to put an end
to the misdeeds that are the ultimate
causes Of the suffering, and, as a means
to this end, where possible 10 punish
those responsible for them. There may
be honest differences of opinion as to
many governmental policies; but surely
there can be no such differences as to
the need of unhinching perseverance in
the war against successful dishonesty"
Wants Federal Control
The President insists that federal con-
troll Of all corporations doing an inter
state business is necessary and that it
would benefit alike the corporations and
the public. He wants the Sherman anti
trust law strengthened and changed SO
that while it will permit certain business
combinations, which are right and prop
er, it will not allow harmful trusts to
exist He recognizes that certain COM
blnations and merging of vast corpora
tons are proper and urges that the act
be so amended that this can be law
fully accomplished. He sayo the rail
roads should welcome federal control as
1t will save them from a multitude of
conflicting laws passed by tie various
states.
Leave the Tariff Alone.
This being a presidential year, Mr..
Roosevelt does not think that the tariff
ought to be touched until after election
He says:
This country is definitely committed to
the protective syJtem and any effort to
uproot it could not but cause widespread
Industrial disaster. In other words, the
principle of the present tariff law could
not with wisdom be changed. But in q
country of such phenomenal growth as
ours it. is probably well that every dozen
years of SO the tariff laws should be care
fully Scrutinized so as to see that no eX-
cessive or improper benefits are con-
ferred thereby, that proper revenue Is
provided, and that our foreign trade
is encouraged. There must be as Il
minimum Il tariff which will not only
allow for the collection of an ample
revenue but which will at least make
good the difference in cost of production
here and abroad: that is, the difference in
the labor cost here and abroad, for the
well-being of the wake-worker must ever
be cardinal point of American policy
The question should be approached pure
~ from business standpoint: both the
time and the manner Of the change being
such as to arouse the minimum of agita-
ton and disturbance in the business
world. and to give the least play for sell
fish and fractional motives. The sole
consideration should be to see that the
sum total of changes represents the pub
lie good. This means that the subject
cannot with wisdom be dealt with in the