The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1908-04-29
plainly dishonest and supported by

plainly dishonest and supported by
false aflirmations.
In Its conclusion the commission
recommends as follows: Comment
on the moral meaning of these meth
ods and Transactions would seem
snperhuous. but as they We're defenGel
Mt the public hearings of the commits
sion and asserted to he common and
entirely proper incidents of business
life. and as these practices have been
freely resorted to by some OF the
largest Industrial corporations that the
world has ever known, the commission
deems it proper to record its own opin-
ion. The commission dislikes to be-
legged, established by the general Gus
tom of the business community; and
this defense itself, If unchallenged,
amounts tn a grave accusation against
the honesty of present business meth
DDS.
ITO answer an invitation for public
or private work by sending in what
purports to be genuine bids, but what
in realty are collusive figures purpose
ly made higher than the bid which is
known will be submitted by one OF
the supposed competitors, is an act
of plain dishonesty. To support these
Interpretations by false atiirma-
tons in writing that bids are sub
mitted in good faith and without
fraud, sollusion, or connection with
any other bidder, is positive and
deliberate fraud. The successful bid
der in the competition is guilty of OBJ
tanning money by false pretenses; and
the others have made themselves
parties to a conspiracy clearly unlaw-
full at the common law.
"Where, as in the case of the 'Boe-
ton agreement number of the most
important manufacturers and dealers
in structural steel in this country, In
Guiding the American Bridge company,
one of the constituent members of the
United States Steel Corporation, have
combined together for the purpose of
raising prices by mems Of colusive
bids and false representations their
conduct is not only repugnant to COM
mon honesty, but is plainly obnoxious
to the federal statute known as the
Sherman or antitrust law.
''The commission believes that an
example should be made of these men,
and that the members of the Boston
agreement or at least all those who,
in October and November, 1908, ell
tered in the fraudulent competitions
for the Cove street draw span and
the Rrookline street bridge. should be
| brought before federal grand jury
for violation of the act of congress Of
July 2, 1880. The three years limita-
ton for participation in these trans
actions has not yet elapsed, and the
evidence obtained by the commission
is so complete that there should be
no difficulty in the government secur-
ing conviction in this case''
! have submitted this report to the
department Of justice for thorough in
vestigation and for action, If action
| shall prove practicable. Surely such Il
state Of affairs as that above set forth
emphasizes the need Of further federal
legislation, not merely because of the
material benefits such legislation will
secure, but above all because this fed.
eral action should be part, and large
part, OF the campaign to waken our
people as whole to lively and eff
fective condemnation Of the low stand
ard of morality implied in such con-
duct on the part of great business con-
Germs.
The first duty Of every man is to
l mr. In lit,
for those dependent upon him. It
is from every standpoint desirable
that each of our citizens should en-
deavor by hard work and honorable
methods to secure for him and his
such competency as will carry
with it the opportunity to enjoy in
reasonable fashion the comforts and
the man of great business ability who
obtains fortune in upright fashion
inevitably i'll so doing conferS bene-
fit upon the community as whole and
is entitled to reward, to respect. and
| to admiration.
But among the many kinds of evil
social, industrial, and political-which
/ ~ AZ Jun outS 40 q AiaelOu SIClAlN W
combat. there is none at the same time
more base and more dangerous than
the greed which treats the plain and
simple. rules of honesty with cynical
contempt if they interfere with maxi
ing profit And as a nation we can
not be held guiltness If we condone
such action
The man who breaches hatred Of
wealth honestly acquired, who in.
culcates envy and jealousy and SLAM
derous illwill toward those of his fell
lows who by thrift, energy and ill.,
dustry have become men of means, is
a menace to the community. But
his counterpart in evil is to be found
in that particular kind of multimll-
lionaire who is almost the least envia-
bic, and is certainly one of the least
admirable, Of all our citizens man
of whom it has been well said that
his face has grown hard and cruel
while his body has grown soft; whose
son is fool and his daughter for
eign princess; whose nominal pleasures
are at best those OF tasteless and