Willmar tribune., 1907-08-28
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST %. 1907.
"BUSTING" vs.. "CONTROLLING, >


When the great combinations of
capital known as trusts began to be
formed and commenced the opera.
tion of freezing out competition, a
great outcry was raised against
them. 1t was felt that these COM
binatiOns were a menace to the
public welfare. making a few men
absolute masters of industry and
commerce. Naturally enough, the
first thought was to crush them out
by legislation. The result was the
passing of the Sherman antitrust
law, which has served a useful pur-
pose-in demonstrating the inabil-
ity of law to crush a movement
based on a sound economic prin-
icple. There can be no doubt that
industry and transportation can be
more economically handled when
wastcful competition is eliminated.
The difficulty is that the profits Of
this better system do not go to the
actual producer or the consumer;
they are absorbed by the few capi-
talists, and in most instances the
monopoly obtained is used to force
more profits out of the people.
By their strong unions the laborers
under the trusts have managed to
get some concessions from the
trusts; but the consumers, unable
thus to protect their interests by
organizing, have had to bear the
full burden of this insane desire of
the trusts to pile up more money
than they can possibly use.
In spite of the antitrust law,
trusts have multiplied and grown
in strength. What could not be
done openly has been done secretly.
In fact, the greater part of these
trusts have grown up since the pas
sage Of that law. The control of
the transportation system has been
gathered into a few hands, and now
a struggle is on for still further
centralizing this power. 1t is only
a question Of time when the entire
railway system of the country will
be managed by one corporation, or
one group of capitalists masquerade
ing under several corporation
names, all acting in unison.
The politicians are at last Begin
ming to see the futility Of trying
to sweep back the tidal wave with a
broom. Legislation to prohibit
trusts is gradually giving way to
legislation controlling trusts.
Government control" is the
battlecry now. Even President
Roosevelt seems inclined to give up
his title of "trustbuster' which
is very proper thing to do, seeing
there are as many trusts in exist
ence now as when he commenced
his "busting' '-and getting ready
to claim the title Of trust control
ler." The following extract from
his speech at Provincetown, Mass.
shows his change of sentiment:
ultimately the national govern
ment must pass laws which, while
Increasing the supervisory and reg
ulatory power of the government,
also permit such useful combinations
as are made with absolute openness
and as the representatives of the
government may previously approve.
But it will not be possible to permit
such combinations save as the Sec
ond stage in the course Of proceed
ings of which the first stage must be
the exercise of far more complete
control by the national govern
ment.''
This new departure is more logic
al than the old method of "bust-
ing If it can be made effective
it will retain the economic principle
of eliminating waste, and at the
same time give the people some of
the advantages Of the saving. If
that method proves as ineffective
as antitrust legislation-and it
should be remembered that it will
have to encounter the same power
full opposition that made the anti
trust law a dead letter-then we
must adopt the only absolute method
of control, namely, by public owner
ship. BY the time this has been ex-
tended to some Of the things most