Omaha daily bee., 1908-12-15
TRUSTS AND LABOR
Principal Topics Of Discussion at
Civic Federation Meeting. &
ONE LAW FOR ALL PARTIES
Mr.. Low SsyE None Can Be Denied
Concessions Given Others.
TALKS ON TRADE AGREEMENTS
Mitchell Says They Are Logical Ont
growth Of wRsteful Competition.
o'CoKKEIL AND LYNCH SPEAK
Practical workings of Contracts BE-
tween Machinists and Printers
and Their Employers Are
Discussed
Mr.. Low SsyE None Can Be Denied
Concessions Given Others.
TALKS ON TRADE AGREEMENT;
Mitchell Says They Are Logical Out
growth Of wRstsful Competition.
o'CoKKELL AND LYNCH sPEAE

NEW YORK. Dec. 14-Mrs William H.
Taft. wife OF the prssideut-elect Of the
United States. presented At the annual
meeting uf the National Civic federation
today The report Of the committee vel
fare work OF government employees. Of
which she is chairman In her report sub
nit1ed today MrE. Taft suEBesteo a plan
Of work TO prevent overlapping uf BubcOm-
mitteeB and 20 give greater efficiency. She
proposed also many additional rules for the
wuuBn's department providing for investi-
cations of federal department buildings,
navy yards and the like. wei as ate
and municipal hospitals and police stations,
with view 10 discover ng the need in
them foT welfare work or for improvements
TnHs the salary loan evil be MADE a Epe-
cin subject Of inquiry is another recon-
mendstion mRae by Mrs. Taft.
Address of seth Low.
More interest was exhibited by those
in attendance 10 that part Of the address
Of Honorable Seth Low president OF the
federation which discussed the increasing
demand for importHut HmendmsutE 10 the
Sherman antitrust law, the efforts Of the
committee Of the Federation 10 secure the
passage Of amendments by congress, and
the conflict OF interests exhibited In the
search Tor consensus as TO the amend
rnents necessary. Mr.. Low devoted the
last part Of his address 10 this subject.
which, he said, represented the most i'm
portant work OF the Federation during the
last year After recittng the efforts of
the committee appointed for the purpose
and it's failure 10 obtain results. Mr. Low
declared that the situation demanded NOT
so much superficial amendments q
change in the substantive provisions Of the
Sherman law.
Let no One imagine, however" said
Mr.. Low, that If IL ensy thing 10 say
what such changes IN tins Law ought to be
Your committee last spring began its work
in the hope that n would be Ebis TO submit
a law which would command very large
support not only FROM employers, but
also from orehnlzeu labor. After werking
upon the subject for many weeks the bill
which 4 actually presented commanded no
large measure Of support from either. The
mercantile CLASSES favor amendments TO
tina law which. instead Of forbidding all
restraints OF trade. win forbid only un-
reasonable restraints OF trade; and which
win provide amnesty for the past o.
On the theoretical ground that what has
been done has often bean done without any
realization that II was contrary TO the
law; and CD on the practical ground that
10 attempt 10 RIP Mp what has already been
done win destroy the industry OF the
country.
Labor Makes Request.
''Ihe representative OF organized labor
on the other hand. ask to be omitted alto
Esther from the provisions Of the Sherman
act. II Is evident 10 your committee that
the changes desired by the mercantile
CLASSES are going 10 meet with very serious
objection, unless they are combined with
some positive Legislature which VIII provide
some effective method itself In advance
from new combinations in the industrial
sphere. such as have been made In the
past. and which originally created the
sentiment which placed the Sherman anti
trust law upon the statute books.
''The separate states can regulate the
ourparHriunE thar do intrastGte commerce,
because they create them; but the states
cannot regulate the interstate commerce
that Is Done. because under the United
States constitution interEtHte commerce is
under national control. II cannot be too
clearly spprehended that the effect OF this
situation In. thai neither Sovereignty
neither the national Sovereignty nor the
state E0veraignry-uRn regulate both the
agent that does intrastate commerce and
the interstate commerce that Is done This
seems TO me personally a situation very
that al the present time. according II the
best estimates obtRinable. perhaps 80 per
cent Of al commerce iE interstate COM
usroe. and only 10 per cent intrastate CON-
rnerce."
In view OF this condition Mr. Low said
he looked for a constant strengthening Of
the demand for federal incorporation uf al
larger organizations doing interstate
business, and for relation between them
and the government precisely Ike thai
between s. and the national hanks
Iabor end Capital ON Equality.
.sOns thing goes without saying" said
Mr. Low, ''whHtevar modification Of the
law is mace 10 apply TO combinstions O.
capital must apply equally 10 combinations
u labor. and whatever amnesty rs 10 th'
past IL given TO capital must be equally
gwen 10 labor. II an the elements con
oernee win approach the question In thii
spirit cf adjustment. Il IL possible tina
sums amendment may be devised whici
Eil enmnIynd sufficient backing 70 be sue
neHEful Except IN such q spirit, ! Hppre
bend that nOthing can be done"
Taking up the question whether trRd'
Agreements were moi forbidden ny III
sherman antitrust law as interpreted b,
the supreme court Of the United States n
the hRttsr's case. Mr.. Low, while admit
ting THAI ne was not lawyer. expressei
the upinian that the law did not forbid
trade agrsemeuf which was not IN re
strEint OF interEtHte trade. he added
however: 1t iE Quite conreivHbls that
trade agreement might concern ftself Wit
the Ess o. pRrticulAr msIerialk and by 81
doing II might easily come within the scup
OF the Sherman antitrust law: hut 4
trace agrseInent ooufines itself 70 ftS lsEiti
mate oh5ect Of determining the condition.
of emplosment 10 prevail IN certain trad
or enndeznnsc under this act The Ma
tionAl CIVIC federation believes that IA
trAds REresment iE the beEt msrhod ye
devised. IN this Rge % universal organize
tlou. FAR prom0ring alike industrial peans
fndus1rial well being and industrial pros
1c0utinBsa On sso0aa PAEs9