New-York tribune., 1908-12-16
TAFT OPPOSES REPEAL
Continued from first page.

of doubt in reference to its construction and 1t It
is true that some of those questions of doubt
led to perhaps the bloodiest civil war ever
fought. , 49,, .4
trust law-the Sherman law. l quite agree InaI
it may need amendment. But II neeuS eulor it,
ment more than repeal. one difficulty win
legislation like that and its discussion Is the
sketChing of impressionsts' pictures without
close study of the language OF the stature llsell
and without understanding the meaning OF
words. and the necessity that there Is OF max
ing definite what is crime what Is an 9IleHTe @ Io
and what is something to be controheu oS the
equitable process of the court ,
It is a matter for lawyers with an intimate
knowledge Of husiness-Of business necessltles
and of the evil that every business man must
recognize which, has come to us growing OUT
of the con1hina tinns of capital I agree that the
combinations Of capital are absolutely neCeS
sarv to the progress of the business world out
I also insist that those combinations may oe
used or rather be abused, to the detr1ment OF
the public. and We must have on the statute
books something to prevent and punish those
abuses. vi,
when a minister comes up there 70 preacn a
sermon before the boys, he asks PRESIDENT
Hadey how long he can speak and the presl-
dent tells him this: That he has full oppOr-
tunity to speak as long as he chooses oQt Ihat
there is a tradition in the college, handed down
from Mr.. Amos Pearson. the first president
that no souls are saved after 20 minutes. and
therefore / do not propose tonight 70 go
further into discussion or construction OF
the Sherman antitrust law lest should lose
the opportunity for conversion
TE-ELECTION SLATE CLEAN.
Rut now there is one additional suggestion
would like to make. It has been exceedingly
agreeable to me to meet here at this board MI:
Mitchell. Mr. Gompers and other Leaders OF
labor I thank Mr.. GOmpers for saying that
am his President much as l am anybodys
President.
that succeeds that there will doubtless arise.
as there ought to arise. suggestions with ref
erence to legislation especially directed to the
Of Ia bOr 7 I9 a
number of questions that ought to be consld-
cred and might very we'll be considered IN the
civic Federation. One of them Is as to an en-
ployers' liability act cannot stop 'o-nlght'
but may say incidentally that in my judg-
rnent one of the greatest dangers 10 TINS He-
public are the delays and therefore the lnJus-
tices Of our administration of justice civil and
criminal
both in the federal and in the state govern
ments we could remove from the courts nine
tenths of those suits brought for the recovery
Of damages and settle a just award unoer
some provision for arbitration. and an admin,
istratfve but uasi-judcial tribunal We couio
help the poor Iaboring men who suffer the accl-
dents to a quick recovery of needed damages
or in such cases the old rule that he gives twice
who gives quickly applies.
IF We could do that we would not only confer
q great benefit on labor the one hand. but
we would remove from the courts great burden
of litigation that would allow them TO carry on
other litigation eXpeditiOUsly and not he clogged
as they now are, that justice does not fall
to he done by reason of wrong decision. but by
delav in reaching a right decision
want to testify. as Mr.. GOmpers did, to the
efficiency of Ralph NJ Easley- | hope he Is as
rersistent in the good works of this Civic Fed
Grafton as he is in making those whom he
wishes to speak and work in if uncomfortaole.
and assume from what Mr.. Gompers says that
he is; certainly he is Indispensable to the sue
cess of this federation.
Mr. Andrew Carnegie was introduced as
"a ptain OF industry. | did not have the pleasure
of knowing him then. therefore l think he be
longs to me or to my class Of itlnerant preacn-
ers have spoken with him now twice behlnd
a Methodist pulpit. and this inclosure now looks
not unlike something ecclesiastical
II is a great pleasure 10 be here In this com
ranv I see possibly some gentlemen that be
fore the election il would not have been right
FOR me to have been closely associated with,
but with the mixture that is here the associa-
ton IS entirely safe
The civic Federation. if l understand its pur-
nose is to enable those who represent lapor
and those who represent capital and those VINO
represent the public and are affected by the
onera ton Of both to come together for the pur-
nose of learning how they differ and where
they agree.
Most Of the quarrels. most Of the contro-
versies i'm the world. have arisen because the
parties to them did not understand what the
other one Contended for exactly; and where they
meet on terms of equality for a discussion Ike
this and step by step follow through the
controversy they usually find. or they frequent
lv find that they don't disagree at all and they
usually find that they agree on many points
and differ very few.