The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-08-26

to the State in which it is created, Con- kress can not interfere with it; but whcn the corporation engages in inter- state commerce. Congress Is the only business.
 In proposing the exerciss of this pow CT. the Democratic platform is not as- sssnting new doct.sne. In January, lsse, Republican House of Represent etives adopted resolution calling up- on Hon. Judsop Harmon, then Attor- ney General of the United States now me Democratic candidate for Governor ot ono. to report what steps. tf any, mad been taken to enforce the law of the United States against trusts, com oinaticus and conspiracies in restraint or trade and coDcmerce. and what fur needed to protect the people against the same. On the sth day of February ne submitted reply. in which he de- scrioed the steps which were being ta- ken to enforce the law. and recom- mended the enactment of further ieEis- lation. call special attention to the following words:
 Congress may make 1t unlawful to ship from one State to another, in car- ryinE out. or attempting to carry out the designs of such (State) organtza- tions, articles produced, owned or con. troiled by them or any of their mern-
 His recommendation embodies the very Idea which our plan now proposes to carry out. We want to make 1t un. lawful for corporation to use the in- strumentalities of interstate commsfes for the carrying out of moEonoiistic purpose. Surely no party sSan. consist. ently claim to be opp3seSe to nrivate monopoiies which VIII permit the inter- ssa le asaroaos Zoe used to carry out VIII peFrnit the Interstate telegraph llIIeres to be used to increase the power Of private monopoly; or. to make the case stronger. no party can consistently will allow the smails of the United States to be used by the trusts as an agency for the extermintst ton of com petition. Congress has already exercis- ed this power to externinate lotteries Why not exercise 1t to make private monopolies impossibls7
 If 1t is conceded that Congress has the power to prevent the shipment of goods from one State to another when such shipment is a part of a conspiracy against trade and commerce, then the only question Is as to the means to be employed to prevent such shipment. The license system presents an easy way of regulating such corporations as need Federal regulation. The law can prohibit the doing of a thing and im- pose a penalty for the violation of the law but experience has shown that 1t Is very difficult to gather up evidence from all sections of the United States and prosecute great corporation: so QimculL IS IT, that altao08n the SneF- man antitrust law has been in force for eighteen years no trMet magnate has becn sent to the penftentiary for violating the law. although m a few cases the court has found corporations guilty of violation of the law. Tn the enforcement of a penalty. the govern- ment must seek the defendant: by the use of the license system, the corpora tion is compelledSto seek the govern mepf.
 trust can best be defined as . cor poration which controls so large a pro portion of the total quantity of any ar- ticie used in this country as to be able to regulate the price and terms of sale and as the proportion controlled de. termines the power of the trust for harm, 1t has seemed best to use propor- tionate control as the basis of this plan, and twenty-five per cent has been fixed arbitrarily as the proportion at which the line should be drawn. A corpora tion which controls less than twenty deals. may, in extraordinary cases. ex- ert a perceptible influence in control. ling the price of the products and the terms of sale. but as a rule a corpora ton must control more than that per- centage of the total product before 1t can exert hurtfui influence on trade. Under this plan. the small corporations are left entirely free and unhampered This is not discrimination against the larger corporation. but a recognition of the fact that rules are necessary in the case of corporations controlling large percentage of the product which are not necessary in the case of smaller corporations. Probably not one per