Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-08-22
urn a full measure of Justice to the

! | bslieve In national Incorporation
law for corporations engaged in in
terstate business. | believe further
more, that the need for action ls NEST
pressing as regards those corpora
lions which, because they are com
mon carriers exercise quasi-public
function; and which can be complete
lily controlled in all respects by the
Federal Government, by the exercise
of the power conferred under the In
terstate-commerce clause, anc II
necessary, under the post-road clause.
of the Constitution.
During the last few years we have
taken marked strides in advance
along the road of proper regulation OF
these railroad corporations; but we
must not stop in the work. The
National Government should exercise
over them similar supervision and
control to that which it exercises over
national banks We can do this only
by proceeding farther along the lines
marked out by the recent nationa!
Legislation.
Must be Hesitation and Experiment.
In dealing with any totally new set
of conditions there must at the out
set be hesitation and experiment.
Such has been our experience in deal
ing with the enormous concentration
of capital employed in interstate bust
mess. Not only the legislatures but
the courts and the people need gradu-
ally to be educated so that they may
see what the real wrongs are and
what the real remedies. Almost every
big business concern is engaged in
interstate commerce, and such a con-
Germ must not be allowed by dex-
ferrous shifting of position, as has
been too often the case in the past, to
escape thereby all responsibility,
either to State or to nation. The
American people became firmly con-
WINGED Of the need of control over
these great aggregations of capital,
especially where they had mono
polistic tendency before they became
quite clear as to the proper way of
I achieving the control. Through their
= representatives in Congress they
:. tried two remedies, which were to a
;, , large degree, at least as interpreted
= by the courts, contradictory. On the
o one hand, under the antitrust law the
= effort was made to prohibit all COM
u bination, whether it was or was not
. hurtful or beneficial to the public. On
~ the other hand, through the inter-
u state commerce law beginning was
II made in exercising such supervision
and control over combinations as to
prevent their doing anything harmful
n to the body politin. The first law, the
st so-called Sherman law, has filled a
II useful place, for it bridges over the
IL transition period until the American
Ia people shall definitely make up its
,s,,l hot will f1n
Is great corporations that thoroughgoing
e and radical control which it is certain
ultimately to find necessary. The
is principle of the Sherman law as far
Is as it prohibits combinations which,
n. whether because of their extent or of
" their character, are harmful to the
II public must always be preserved.
ar Ultimately and hope with reason.
u. able speed, the National Government
ID must pass laws which, while increas
r. Ing the supervisory and regulatory
t. power of the Government, also per.
: mits such useful combinations as arc
70 made with absolute openness and as
70 the representatives Of the Govern
ID mont may previously approve. But il
n. will not be possible to permit such
n combinations save as the secono
10 stage In a course of proceedings Of
a which the first stage must be the
Il exercise of far more complete con
20 troll by the National Government.
Il In dealing with those who offene
y, against the antitrust and interstate
ar commerce laws the Department o
=, Justice has to encounter many ane
- great difficulties.
OFTEN MEN WHO HAVE Been
rs GUILTY OF VIOLATING THESE
ID LAWS HAVE REALLY ACTED IN
op CRIMINAL FASHION,, AND If POS
ed sIBLs SHOULD BE PROCEEDED
is AGAINST cRIMINALLY; AMI
to THEREFORE, 1T is ADVISABLE
III THAT THERE SHOULD BE 1
or CLAUSE IN THESE LAWS PR6ViD
ING FOR SUCH CRIMINAL ACTION
AND FOR PUNISHMENT BY I'm
PRlsoNMENT AS WELL AS By
OIL FINE.
+, = In Criminal Action Law Favors De
w PENDANT.
of But, as is well known, IN crimina
he action the law is strictly construed Il
em favor of the defendant, and In Oh
On country, at least, both Judge an
ng jury are far more inclined to conside
If his rights than they are the interes,
Ire Of the general public; while in add
mt, ton it is always true that man
sor general practices may be so bad tina
civil action will lie when 1t may nc
Is be possible to convict him of an
fl one criminal act There is unfol
yer tunately a certain number of on
or fellow countrymen who seem
ire accept the view that unless ma
ms can be proved guilty Of some particl
er- lar crime he shall be counted goo
tu- citizen, no matter how infamous tn
ldi- life he has led, no matter how perm
ed. cious his doctrines or his practice
ust This is the view announced from tim
We to time with clamorous insistenc
ion now by a group of predatory capita
my lists. now by group of sinists
ley anarchistic leaders and agitator
!, EheneXer snecial chamnion