The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1908-07-30

- lAdt SuCn lar e aS-FeSsttlOuS OF cap
ital and combination should be CON
trolled so that the public may have
the advantage of reasonable prices
and that the avenues Of enterprise
/ may be Kept open to the Individual and
the smaller corporation wishing to en-
J gage in business.
/ Many enterprises have been organ
lied on the theory that mere aggrega-
ton of all, or nearly all. existing plants
/ in a line Of manufacture. without re-
/ gard to economy of production. de-
/ stroys competition. They have, most
/ Of them, gone into bankruptcy Com
/ petition in profitable business will
not he affected by the mere aggrega-
| ton of many existing plants under one
company. unless the company thereby
/ Effects great economy, the benefit Of
which it shares with the public. or
takes some illegal method to avoid
competition and to perpctuate a hold
on the business.
Proper Treatment of Trusts.
Unlawful trusts should be restrained
with all the efficiency of fniunctive
process, and the persons engaged in
maintaining them should be punished
with all the severity of criminal pros
ecution, in order that the methods pur-
sued in the operation of their business
shall be brought within the law To
| destroy them and to eliminate the
! wealth they represent from the pro-
| ducing capital of the country would
! entail enormous loss. and would throw
out of employment mvriads Of work
I in@men and workiuGUomen. Such a
result is wholly unnecessary to the &C
complishment of the needed reform,
ard will inflict upon the innocent far
greater punishment than upon the
guilty.
Destructive Policy Of Democratic Plat
form.
The Democratic platform does not
propose to destroy the plants Of the
trusts physically, but ii proposes to
do the same thing in a different way,
The business Of this country is large
! ~ dependent on protective system Of
| tariffs The business done by many
Of the so called trusts" is protected
| with the other business Of the country.
| The Democratic platform proposes 70
take off the tariff in all articles com
! ing into competition with those pro
duced by the so called trusts" and
! to put them on the free list If such
a course would be utterly destructive
Of their business, as is intended. it
would not only destroy the trusts, but
| all of their smaller competitors The
| ruthless and impracticable character
of the proposition grows palmer as its
| effects upon the whole community are
! realized.
To lake the course suggested by the
Democratic platform in these matters
! is to involve tie entire community. in
nocelt as it is in the punishment of
the guilty, while our policy is to stamp
out the specific evil. This difference
! between the policies of the two great
| parties is of especial Importance in
view of the present condition of bust
| ness. After ten years of the most re-
| markable material development and
! prosperity, there came a financial strin-
| Seucy, a panic and an industrial de-
| preston. This was brought about not
only by the enormous expansion of
| business plants and business invest
mcnts which could not be readily con
vertel, but also by the waste of capt.
tai. in. extravaganza of living, in wars
| ana other cataStrophies
Republican Doctrine of Protection.
The Republican doctrine Of protec-
| ton, as definitely announced by the
Republican convention of this year
and by previous conventions, is that a
tariff shall be imposed on all imported
products, whether of the factory. farm
or mine, sufficiently great to equal the
difference between the cost of produc-
ton abroad and at home, and that this
difference should, of course, include
the difference between the higher
wages paid in this country and the
wages paid abroad and embrace rea-
sonable profit to the American pro-
Queer \ system of protection thus
adopted and put in force has led to
the establishment of a rate of wages
here that has greatly enhanced the
standard Of living of the laboring man.
1t is the policy of the Republican party
permanently to continue that standard
Of living. In 1897 the Dingley Tariff
Bill was passed, under which we have
had, as already said. a period of enor-
nous prosperity.
Necessity For Revision of Tariff.
The consequent material develop
ment has greatly changed the condi-
tions under which many articles de-
scribed by the schedules of the tariff
are now produced. The tariff in a
| number of the schedules exceeds the
difference between the cost of produc-
ton of such articles abroad and at
home, including reasonable profit to
the American producer. The excess
over that difference serves no useful
purpose, but offers temptation to
those who would monopolize the pro-
duction and the sale of such articles
In this country, to profit by the excess
i've rate. On the other hand, there are
other schedules in which the tariff is
not sufficiently high to give the meas
ure Of protection which they should re-
ceive upon Republican principles. and