The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-07-17
AUDIENCE BUNCOED
NIDST NUER CALL MERELY TO
or ~ IL DIENCE FOR COCHRAN.
Tic Had Two Ideas and q Fear Perhaps That
ItooscNclt Wight Annex Them One Is
10 Have state and Empio,ee s Rep
resented on the Corporate Boards.


Iwo thousand men who assembled N
Tsmmany Hall last night expecting that
Charles 4 Murphy was to do something
g. Mayor Mcclellan. concluded that the
o.. ri April had moved into midsummer
Nne1 Mr. Murphy on Monday hurrie dly
or cred the executive and general com
mtrres g. meet last night it was ingeniously
n'matci AZ the Fourteenth Street head
quarters that while no one had any definite
Itt0 & the purpose OF the suddenly called
rcotiug ~ object VAS undoubtedly to take
s.re alton on the situation existin q be-
tween the City Hall and Fourteenth Street.
T." game worked. The sweltering crowd
clmc And oil that IL had for It's pains was
the PLEASURE of listening to a four thousand
word resolution and a long speech by W.
iorrkN Cochran expressing two ideas he
IA avo.vei since the warm weather set in
'cs the letter control of public service
corporations and for facilitating the sd-
'llcstion Of cases in ths courts
The throng waited to the very end Of the
meeting as it does at boxing matches,
where the great event comes last. hoping
'ha' something exciting was going to hap
yel before bedtime; and when the meeting
was declared adjourned after the adoption
Of the resolution embodying MIR. Cockran's
l~anaceas il was agreed that the lemonade
was rrctty strong.
Alter tho meeting was over a great deal
OF curiosity was expressed as to Mr..
NIrrphufa raaaARa o.. oalIinn eha .A.t,nA
IN such a hurry. The only solution offered
was that Mr.. Cochran saw President Roose-
,elt on Sunday, and il was surmisei that he
might have unfolded his ideas to the Presi-
dent, and then. on reflection. becoming
afraid that the President would annex
them. had appealed to Nc. Murphy to call
the committees together in order that he
might make his inventions known before
Mr.. Roosevelt could put them forth.
His resolutions were presented in the
nature Of a report from the committee on
rules They began by ~denouncing the .
creation OF the new public service com
missions as a cunning attempt to deceive
the public conscience by a pretended
compliance with the demand Of the Demo-
cratic platform for the establishment OF
such a commission Then after declaring
tndL III All pubic BtTNtCc COMPUTATIONS
there were three interests involved. those
Of the community, of capital and OF labor.
they said:
4 corporation en- ga ged in interstate com.
merce should include the President Of the
United States with its board OF directors; a
corporation operating within a State the Gov
ernor; those operating in narrower limits
the chief executive officer Of the locality.
each with the right to attend the sessions Of
every board by himself, or by any other
PERSONS he may choose TO designate. II
should be not merely the right of govern
ment 10 inquire through appropriate officials
how It's franchises are administered. but 1t
should he equally its duty to keep con-
etsntly informed OF everything concerning
their operations. as IL Is now to keep In
formed OF how the mail service IL conducted
throughout the country. how the different
departments are administered in each state.
how streets are cleaned and lighted in every
city. Investigations OF corporate manage
ment would not be sporadic or caprlcious.
frequently sources of disorder and corrup-
non, but publicity would be continuous.
orderly, complete and affective. The people
being kept informed OF everything anecting
the operations of these corporations would
enjoy the kind Of service they insist upon
receiving.
We hold moreover that IN Zach corporation
~ 49,
should be- required to elect one or more OF
their number 70 all on the board OF directors
~ that they might he kept informed OF every
trans tctIon affecting the fund from which
Their wages must be- drawn. that i- TO say,
every operation OF the company. Peace be-
t'rpn The different elements that must cO-
operate In the administrator OF these enter
rises II not made absolutely secure would
A. east bc sensibly promoted if questions
aN.Ctipg hours or wages were discussed
aniclbly and intelligently among Equals in
+ board with identical interests In the COM
mon fund, not violently or intemperately by
men believing themselves to be divided by
lrrsConcilabiy hostile interests, one element
dIsrruatine the morals not less than the iudg-
uent OI the other.
The second suggestion was that to
lrcvent delays in the courts there should
- more branches Of the Appellate Division,
AMI that in order that the calendars Of
the lower courts should be cleared up at
the end Of every month special commissions
should he appointed TO try jury cases
Mr.. Cochran. who " rote the document
and who made the only speech OF the
evening. declared that many Of the re-
forms which had recently been made in
the laws dealing with the corporations
were suggested in Tammany Hall twenty
F'hI' hk's d"i HO tiotO tO
that the reforms he suggested last night.
while they might be ridiculed now. would
Ultimately he carried into effect
The rascalities which had been 80 far
uncovered in the workings OF the corpora
tons We're only a part Of the rascalitlss
which existed, and he insisted that the
remedy for the evils pyactised by the fran
'.is" holding corporations was the schems
b" Du! sat forth in his resolutions Then
y .he operations did wrong, oppressed the
people, or showed Partially or u~nfairness,
the Government would be a party for thoss
mlsdolngs and would be held accountable
for them Labor. he said. should have the
right to sit on the directorates Of the corpo-
iatlons in order that IL might possess the
power Of inspection over the acts OF the
controlling powers Of the corporations.
This is a suggestion. " he continued. that
has not yet been offered by any one else.
and think it is the only adequate solution
Of the problem which confronts us to-day.
as to how best to control the public COM
uaniea'