The Washington herald., 1908-04-28
PRESIDENT SENDS THIRD
MESSAGE ONLEGISLATION|
Expresses Confidence That Part of His Programme Win Be En-
acted Bat Repeats His Recommendation for Restricted
Inunctions and Modified Trust Law

DSStftCN ~ HSL L4Ws
in this country of that evil thing which
is called class consciousness. The dem
agogue. the sinister OF foolish socialist
visionary who strives to arouse this feel
ing Of class consciousness in our work
ing people, does a foul and evil thing
for he is no true American, he is nj
self-respeeting citizen of this republic
he forfeits his right to stand with manly
self-reliance on a footing of entire equal
ity with all other citizens. who bows Il
envy and greed, who erects the doctrine
Of class hatred into a shibboleth. whC
substitutes loyalty to men Of a particu
lar status, whether rich or poor. foi
loyalty to those eternal and immutablt
principles of righteousness which bid Il!
treat each man on his worth as a mar
without regard TO his wealth or hi!
poverty.
But evil though the influence of these
demagogUes and Missionaries is, il is NJ
worse in its consequences than the infiu-
ence exercised by the man Of grea
wealth or the man OF power and posi-
tion in the industrial world who. by hi.
lack of sympathy with and lack of un.
derstanding of. still more by any ex
hibition of uncompromising hostility t
the millions of our working people, tend:
to unite them against their fellow
Americans who are better off in thi:
worlds goods.
1T is a bad thing 10 teach our work.
ing people that men of means. that mer
who have the largest proportion OF the
substantial comforts OF life are neces-
sarily greedy, grasping, and cold-hearted
and that they unjustiy demand and ap-
propriate more than their share of the
substance of the many Stern Condemna.
tion should be visited upon demagoguC
and visionary who teach this untruth. anC
even sterner upon those capitalists who
are, in truth. grasplng and greedy and
brutally disregardful OF the rights OF
others and who. by their actions, teach
the dreadful lesson far more effectively
than any mere preacher of unrest A
class grievance lett too long without
remedy breeds class consciousness ~ad
therefore, class resentment.
Would Control Wealth.
The strengthening Of the antitrust Law
is demanded upon both moral and econo-
mic grounds. Our purpose in strength.
ening it is 10 secure more effective con.
troll by the national government over tbs
business use Of the vast masses Of indt-
vidual, and especially OF corporate
wealth, which at the present time mo-
nopolize most of the interstate business OF
the country; and We believe the contro
can best be exercised by preventing the
growth OF abuses, rather than merely BY
trying to destroy them when they have
already grown. In the highest sense OF
the word this movement for thorough
control Of the business use of this great
wealth is conservative
We are trying to steer a safe middle
course. which alone can save US from g
plutocTatic class government on tie ont
hand, or sOcialistic class government OF
the other either OF which would bt
fraught with disaster 10 our free institu
tions, State and national We are t-ying
to avoid alike the evils which would few
from government ownership Of the public
utilities by which interstate commerce Is
chiefly carried on, and the evils which
flow from the riot and chaos Of unre-
stricted indiyidualism. There IS grave
danger 20 our free institutions In the
eorrupting influence exercised by great
wealth suddenly concentrated in the
hands OF the Few. We should in sane
manner try to remedy this danger, IN
spite of the sullen opposition of these
Few very powerful men, and with the
full purpose to protect them in all theil
rights at the very time that we REQUIRE
them to deal Tishtfully with others.
Antitrust Law ''sIfschievouS."
When with steam and electricity mod.
ern business conditions went through tbs
astounding revolution which in this coun.
try began over half a century ago. there
was al first much hesitation as TO what
particular governmental agency should bs
used to grapple with the new conditions
AT almost the same time, about twenty
years since, the effort was made TO con-
troll combinations by regulating them
through the Interstate Commerce Com
mission. and to abolish them by means
of the antitrust act; the two remedies
therefore being in part mutually incom-
patible. The interstate commerce Law
has produced admirable results, especially
since it was strengthened by the Hep
burn law two years ago.
THE antitrust law, though il worked
some good. because anything is better
than anarchy and complete absence OF
regulation, nevertheless has proved IN
many respects not merely inadequate but
mischievous. Twenty years ago the mis-
use Of corporate power had produced al
most every conceivable form of abuse
and had worked the gravest injury 70
business morality and the public con-
a l.
ton Of interstate commerce had been
purely negative, the national judiciary
merely acting in isolated cases to restrain
the State from exercising a power which
Il was clearly unconstitutional as well
AS unwise for them exercise. but which.
nevertheless, the national government it
self failed to exercise.
THUS the corporations monopolizing
commerce made the law for themselves.
State power and common law being made
Quate to accomplish any effective regula-
ton. and the national power not vet hav-
Ing been put forth. The result was mis-
chievous in the extreme. and only short
sighted and utter failure 10 appreciate
the grossness of the evils to which the
lack of regulation gave rise. can excuse
the weli-meaning persons who now desire
l.
TO amend it by simply cOndemnlng 'un-
combinations.
Favors Executive Control.
Power should unquestionabIy be lodged
somewhere in the executive branch of
the government TO permit combinations
which will further the public interest:
but it must always be remembered that.
as regards the great and wealthy combi-
nations through which most of the inter-
state business Of to-day is done, the bur-
den of proof should be on them to show
that they have a right 10 exist No judi
cial tribunal has the knowledge or the
experience to determine in the first place
whether a given combination is advisable
or necessary in the interest of the public.
Somebody whether a commission. or
a bureau under the Department of Com