The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1908-04-30

to the federal statute known as the sher-
man or antitrust law.
The commission believes that an ex-
ample should be made OF these men, and
that the members Of the Boston Agree
ment,' or at least all those who, In Oc-
tober and November, 1906. entered In the
fraudulent competitions for the Cove
street draw span and the Brookline street
bridge, should be brought before a fed
eral grand jury for violation OF the act
OF congress OF July 2, 1890. The three
years limitation for participation In these
transactions has not yet elapsed, and the
50 complete that there should be no diff
nculty In the governments securing a con-
viction in this case"
have submitted this report TO the de-
partment OF justice for thorough investi-
cation and for action II action shall prove
practicable.
Demands Legislation.
Surely such a state Cf AFFAIRS as tnat
above set forth emphasizes the neeo OF
further federal legislation, not merely pc
cause OF the material benefits such leBlS-
lation will secure, but above all because
this federal action shout be part, and q
large part, of the campaign TO waken OUT
people as a whole to a lively eHective
morality implied In such conduct on tne
part of great business concerns: Inc nrst
duty OF every man Is 20 provide a nyel.
hood for himself and for those aepsnuS an
.oPSAA AAAA - y ~ AASA vi
strable that each of our citizens snouio
endeavor by haru work and honorable
methods to C Cor him ms such
q competence as will carry with II the OPP
p%ortunlty to enjoy in reasonable fashion
the comforts and refinements OF lie, anu,
furthermore, the man OF great puslhess
ability who obtains a fortune In uprlsnt
fashion inevitably In so doing corners u
benefit upon the community as o Who're
and IL entitled to reward. to respect ana
to admiration.
cial, Industrial, and political, which IT Is
our duty as a nation sternly to compat,
there Is none at the sanle time more pase
and more dangerous than the greed Wh.ch
treats the plain and simple rules OK nom
esty with cynical contempt IL they inter-
fere with making a profit: as q ma
ton we can not be held guiitless II We
condohe such action. The maH wanno
quired, who inculcates envy n Jealousy
and slanderous III will toward those OF ms
fellows who by thrift, energy, ana IN
menace tc the community. But his coun-
terpart In eTi! In 20 be found In thai. par
ticular kind of notwithstanding VINO ~ al
most the least envible, and - Germany
one of the least admirable, OF all our CIT
liens; a man OF whom It has been wei
said that his lace has grown hard ano
cruel while his body has grown SOIL
whose son Is a fool and his daughter a
foreign princess: whose nominal pleas
ures are at best those of a tasteiess anu
~extravaEant Izxury, and whose real de-
light, whose real life work, - the act
sordid and least ~elevatfng form. In the
chaos OF an absolutely Unrestricted COM
mercial individualism under modern con-
dit!ons, this Is a type that becomes prom
inent as inevitably as the marauder baron
became prominent in the physical chaos
of the dark ages. We are striving TOT
legislation to minimize the abuses which
give this type IFS fiourishing prominence
partly for the sake OF what can be ac-
complished by the legislation itself, and
partly because the legislation marks our
participation in a great and stern moral
movement to bring our ideals ana our con-
- Theodore Roosevelt.
The White House, April q, 1905.
Summary Of Report.
In the report OF the finance committee
to the mayor and city council OF Boston,
s~ubtoined by the president 70 MS MESSAGE
the methods employed in the alleged col
lusions are considered under three heads
combinations among boilermakers, COM
binations among contractors for fire proof
Ing, and combinations between corpora
tons and firms engaged in the manufac-
ture or supply OF structural steel. . .El'
Under the first heading the COMMITTEES
charges that Some one familiar with the
operations OF the school house department
would furnish each person invited to bid
the names OF the other persons to whom
invitations had been extended. The con-
Germs SelecCeQ WOulO Inen HrTdLBe pS-
tween themselves as to who should do the
work, as to the price to be fixed and as
to the division Of the profits.
The report names two companies as the
corporations found to be guilty OF collu-
sive practices in bidding for FIRE PROBING
contracts. and says: ''These companies
combined for the purpose OF parcelling
out the work. Contract for contract was
generally conceded, although In some
cases money was paid as the price of abb
staining from competition. This resulted
in high prices to the customer, and exac-
tons were thus obtained from all sorts
and conditions Of men and corporations"
The portion of the report devoted to
combinations in the structural steel trade
deals with what is termed ''the Boston
agreement" and the charge Is made that
"in order to preserve the appearance of
competition and to insure the success OF
the scheme Of collision, the parties to the
agreement would arrange the bids to b.
submitted In a progressive scale above the
prearranged bid Of the concern to which
the work had been allotted.
The members OF the agreement did not
to fortify their bid by false
statements In writing hat they were
made in good faith, without fraud, collu-
sion or connection with any other bidder"