The San Francisco call., 1908-12-02
IT'S AN ERA
OF DEVELOPMENT
Secretary Straus Makes Strong
Recommendations in His
Annual Report
Would Deal With Corporations
According to Use of COM
binatiOn Powers

tAYAsHlNGTON, Dec. Important
ana unusual statements and recon-
mendations are made by Secretary
oscar S. straus in the sixth annual re-
port Of the department of commerce
and labor. made public today.
sour age. says Secretary Straus,
- as: been: very properly called an era
OF commercial development and ex-
pansion, and the United States. by rea-
son OF its. many exceptional advantages,
its bcundless natural resources, and
possessing. q growing. Intelligent, ener-
Eeuc. enterprising and self-reliant
population. is reaping a greater share
Of Industrial and commercial prosperity
than any Of the other nations Of the
world. As: the head of the department,
Il has. been my constant aim so TO ad
=. minister its various branches as TO
sffofd the greatest amount of assist
aace. information and guidance to the
: Various industrial and commercial &C
tivhtfes that. come under its administra
1--WE scope
LABOR AND INDUSTRIES
; Strans points out that labor and the
industries ard. commerce are inter
dependent. THAT commerce which is
developed and expanded TO the detri-
5nent5: either OF the health or of the
wage. standard Of the laborers engaged
therein, However profitable it might be
n the material sense, is harmful TO
-natson;s. welfare and should be dis
cpuragedi
Particular attention is devoted by
she secretary in his report TO the
bureaus Of immigration and naturaliza-
sfon. corporations and labor. While
other bureaus of. the department are
friportanx, the three mentioned bear
the more directly upon the material
interests OF the people than do any of
The others; The report, as it relates
10. them, scarcely can be considered as
an ordinary departmental report. as it
IS .xeplete with information, suggestion
and human interest
CHECK UNDESIRABLE CLASSES
scencernlng the bureau of immigra-
7tion. StraIrs points out that UP to the
cI0Se-9 of the civil war all our laws were
framed. to encourage immigration and
tnat Sihce then American legislation,
while nat hostile TO immigration, has
been directed toward the elimination
bf;liEdesirable classes. AS a result of
his legislation the percentage Of for
'etgh born persons in our population
has Remained practically stationary for
. 90 years Coneretely. the percentage
! Of foreign born in 1860 was 1872. while
IN 1900 it was 1877.
= -aI)uring portion of the past fiscal
year. says StraUs, and extending into
the present, this country has suffered
nj .fndustrfal depression due TO a num-
-Eer: Of causes, among others TO over
production, which was world wide, but
perhaps for the time being mora accen-
fuated in this than in the other COM
rnerciaI countries" The effect OF this
depression upon immi grafton was i'm
mediate, the fiscal year of 1908 show
3rg. a. falling OF in immigration Of
about 80 per cent.
CONCERNING CORPORATIONS
On the subject Of corporations Straus
says: 1T. is becoming more and more
obvious that the. work Of the govern
.meEt IN regulating corporations should
not be directed at the mere existence
Of Capitalization itself, as such, but
E6ouid. deal rather with the way in
wshich the combination powers are
used, So as to prevent as far as pos
Eible the misuse of these great indus
trial forces. Only such combinations
as are formed for wrongful purposes.
or such consultations as use their pow
ers for. evil, should be brought under
the condemnation of the law"
F.. :Stral rs strongly recommends the
adoption of q definite system of positive
suPervision and regulation of corpora
lions. through an. administrative office,
urging. that such a system is construc-
tive. not destructive. Through this
office 1t would be possible TO publish
Important facts as TO corporate opera
tSons; safe guarding the unnecessary
publication :, Of all proper business