Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-04-23
after PAPER TRUST
President May Send Message to
Congress Asking Change in
Sherman Law
COMMISSION CONSIDERED JOKE
Nothing Expected From cannon's Plan
President Confers With solons and
Is In Earnest = Considers Law
Worse Than None as 1t Is, and
Would Prefer Repeal.

Washington, April 23.-President
Roosevelt is seriously considering the
ACCESSIBILITY of bombarding congress
with still another message urging the
representatives of the people to amend
the Sherman law along the lines he
has previously pointed out to them.
The president has not finally made
up his mind about Il new message, but
he talked on the subject to several of
his callers yesterday and said he had
about decided to put the matter up to
congress once more.
The text of the new message, if it is
sent in, will be found in the utter fail
repeal the duty ON wood pulp and
print paper. as repeatedly urged by
the president.
He is arguing with members of the
house now that the commission for
the investigation of the paper trust ev-
identity is u subterfuge which cannot
by any possibility result in any good
to the newspapers of the country I'M
less some extraordinary bit of evil
dence is stumbled upon which the de-
partmcnt of justice was not able to
obtain.
Even in that case, a witness testi-
flying to discriminating facts probably
would be granted immunity by the
court. The president takes the ground
that if the Sherman law were amend
ed as he has suggested the paper trust
in its present form simply could not
exist
President in Earnest.
Not since the passage of the rate bill
has President Roosevelt appeared to
be in such deadly earnest as in his eff
forts to get an amendment of the anti
trust act. He pointed out to congress
men and others who called at the white
house yesterday that if the trusts and
corporations were compelled to obtain
a license from the federal government
before engaging in interstate COM
merce they would have to show that
they were not monopolies in restralnt
of trade, and the government would be
in absolute possession OF facts and
figures regarding their process OF
manufacture and methods of selling.
Under such circumstances such an
elaborate, costly and useless investi-
cation as that proposed by Speaker
Cannon and adopted by the house
would not be seriously considered even
for the purpose of deluding the people.
The failure of the house to repeal the
duty on wood pulp and paper has Civ
en- to President Roosevelt the very
thing he wanted to point a moral and
adorn the tale For this reason he is
more than likely to send in another
message on the subject and, in fact, he
ALREADY has sketched it's general out
line to several of his callers.
Whatever may be thought as to the
constitutionality of such an act, there
is no doubt in the minds of most con-
gressmen that the remedy suggested
by the president would put an end to
great many illegal combinations and
would stop such eXactions as that OF
which the paper trust has been guilty.
The president in his message last
March outlined his plan fully, and if
new message is sent in it will follow
closely the lines of the one commune
Gated to congress about a month ago.
His Previous Recommendation.
In that general message President
Roosevelt, after explaining that the
Sherman law was so faulty in many
respects that prosecutions could nc be
successfully carried on, outlined his
remedy as follows:
"The substantive part of the ants
trust law should remain as at present;
that is, every contract in restraint OF
trade or commerce among the several
states or with foreign nations should
continue to be declared Illegal; pro-
vided, however, that some proper gov
ernmental authority, such as the COM
missioner of corporations, acting UNI
der the secretary of commerce and Ia
Dor, be allowed to pass on any such
contracts. Probably the best method
of providing for this would be to enact
that any contract, subject to prohibl-
ton contained in the antitrust law,
into which it was desired to enter
might be filed with the bureau of cor
porations or other appropriate execu-
tive body This would provide pub
Lefty. Within, say, sixty days of the
filing-which period would be extended
by order of the department whenever
for any reason it did not give the de-
partment sufficient time for a thor
ough examination-the executive de-
partment having the power might for
bid the contract. which would then be-
come subject to the provisions of the
antitrust law if at all in restraint of
trade. If no such prohibition was is
sued. the contract would then only be
liable to attack on the ground that 1T
constituted an unreasonable restraint
of trade Whenever the period of filing
had passed without any such prohlbl-
ton, contracts or combinations could
be disapproved or forbidden only after
notice and hearing, with reasonable
provision for summary review on APP
peal by the courts"
Costly Investigations Made.
The record Of the department of JUS
tice is full of stories of elaborate in
designations conducted at great ex-
pense by the government of one motor
ious trust after another These inves-
LEGATIONS have generally developed
practically the same state of affairs.
That is. they have satisfied every one