The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1907-07-25
GOING TO EXTREMES
Limit OF , Legislative
Insanity in Texas
ONE LAW A SAMPLE

New York, July 23.-The New York
Journal of Commerce, in commenting
on the attitude Of the state of Texas
| in its war upon trust and alleged
trusts, thus points out the absurd
tiles to which the extreme actions
taken by the legislature of that state
has led:
The Legislature of Texas has gone to
the extreme in various ways in what
it considered "antitruSt" legislation,
but it reached the height Of absurd
ity at the recent session. 1t passed
an act making it felony punish
able by a term Of from two to ten
years in the penitentiary for any
person in that state to deal in, sell
or handle goods manufactured Or con-
trolled by a trust or to act as an
agent in disposing of trust made
goods" The significance of this de-
ponds much upon what is meant by
trust" and ''trust-made," and as we
have not seen the text of the act in
question we do not know how these
terms are defined if at all. 1t does
not make any difference how they
may be defined, the effect of such
which make crimes of the wrong
thing and putting penalties in the
wrong place. BUSINESS interests all
over the state hre reported to be
holding meetings to memorable the
Governor to call a special session Of
the Legislature to repeal or modify
this law on account of the harm it is
doing.
Judging by the past action Of the
Texas Legislature and the general
spirit displayed there, such law
would make it crime to sell within
the state any product of the Standard
Oil Company, the American Sugar Re-
filming Company, the American Tobacco
Company, the American Harvester
Company and various other "Ameri-
can" corporations commonly known
as trusts" If the law has a defini
ton that excludes these it can hav.
very little meaning Of any kind and
would have no such effect as it is evil
IDENTIFY producing. If it has a mean
ing which includes them, where is the
line to be drawn? If a business cor
pOratiOn is to be made criminal there
IS need Of some strict definition of
what is to constitute it's criminality,
and until that is established it is RI
diCulOus to make it criminal in a state
to deal in its products or act Us it's
agent. In fact, the absurdity of this
kind Of legislation and the mischief
it is sure to do are so manifest that
one wonders at the order OF intellect
and the sort Of education that prevail
in State where it is possible.
But the chief harm OF this kind of
extreme radical action, Of which there
has been good deal in varying de-
grees in the last few months, is the
reaction it is sure to produce against
restrictive legislation that is legiti-
mate and necessary. 1t may be exhib-
tied by courts as we'll as legislatures
where there is an infiamed public SEN
timent, more addicted to passion than
given to thought The sentence of
railroad ticket agents to the chain
gang in North Carolina for not observ-
ing the limit Of passenger fares in
that State, just fixed at 2 IA cents a
mile, but charging the company's regu-
lar rate, is calculated to work in the
same direction. The North Carolina
chain gang is a barbarism at best that
it would do we'll not to make too con-
spicuous, but there is a decent way
of testing the validity Of the new law
and this is not it. If there is going to
be lynching policy for trusts in the
South, not. only will it's business suf-
fer, but there will be a revulsion Of
sentiment which will prevent whole
some restraint and regulation. Much
good has been accomplished by the
antitrust agitation, but when it goes
to violate extremes it not only does
direct harm but produces a reaction
liable to undo the good that has been
accomplished The more heads any
power has the more dangerous it is to
lose them.