The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1907-12-03

MESSAGE
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Continued from Page O1e.)
by means of lawsuits. The design
should be to prevent the abuses Incl
dent to the creation of unhealthy and
improper combinations instead of wait
ing Until they are in existence and
then attempting to destroy them by
civil or criminal proceedings.
Law Should Be Explicit.
A combination should not be tolerat-
ed If 1t abuse the power acquired by
combination to the public detriment.
No corporation or association of any
kind should be permitted to engage in
foreign or interstate that is
formed for the purpose of or whose
operations create a monopoly or gen
eral control of the production. sale or
distribution of any one or more of the
prime necessities of life or articles of
general use and necessity. Such COM
binations are against public policy.
They iolat the common law The
doors of the courts are closed to those
who are parties to them, and l believe
the congress can close the channels of
interstate against them for
its protection. The law should make
it's prohibitions and permissions as
clear and definite as possible, leaving
the least possible room for arbitrary
action or allegation of such action on
the part of the executive or of diver
gent interpretations by the courts.
Among the points to be aimed at
should be the prohibition Of unhealthy
competition, such as by rendering serv-
Ice at an actual loss for the purpose of
crushing out competition, the proven
ton of imitation of capital and the pro-
hibition of a corporations making eX-
elusive trade with itself a condition of
having any trade with itself. Reason
able agreements between or combina-
lions of corporations should be per
mitted provided they are first submit
ted to and approved by some appro-
pirate government body.
Congress Power.
The has the power to char
ter corporations to engage in interstate
and foreign commerce, and a general
law can be enacted under the provi-
sions of which existing corporations
could take out federal charters and
new federal corporations could be ere
ated. An essential provision of such u
law should be a method of predeter-
mining by some federal board or com
mission whether the applicant for q
federal charter was an association or
combination within the restrictions of
the federal law. Provision should also
be mad for complete publicity in ali
matters affecting the public and com
plete protection to the investing public
n the shareholders in the matter of
issuing corporate securities. If al in
corporation law is not deemed advisa-
bic, a license act for big interstate cor
porations might be enacted or a com
bination of the two might be tried.
The supervision established might be
analogous to that now exercised over
national banks. At least the anti
trust act should be supplemented by
specific prohibitions of the methods
which experience has shown nave been
of most service in enabling monopolis-
tic combinations to crush out competi-
ton.
The real owners of a corporation
should be compelled to do business i'll
their w name. The right to hold
stock in other corporations should here
after be denied to interstate orpora-
lions, unless on approval by the proper
government officials, and a prerequisite
to such approval should be the listing
with the government of all owners and
stockholders. both by the corporation
owning such stock and by the corpora
ton in which such stock is owned.
Lessons of Recent Crisis.
To confer upon the national govern
ment in connection with the amend
ment l advocate in the antitrust law
power of supervision Owe big business