Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1908-12-15

there is nothing to choose between on the
one hand the corruptioni,t, the bride
gIver, the bribe-taker. the man who en-
ploys MS great talent to syyindie his fell
IoW-atlzens on a large scale, and on the
other hand, the preacher of class hatred
tle man who, whether from ignorance or
from Willingness to sacrifice his country
to his ambition, persuades well-meaning
Dut wrong-headed men TO try to destroy
the Instruments upon which our prosper
ity mainly rests. Let each group of men
beware OF and guard against the shortcom-
ings to which that group is itself most
liable. Too often we see the business
community in a spirit of unhealthy class
Consciousness deplore the effort to hold to
account under the law the wealthy men
who in their management of great corpo-
ratlons, whether railroads. street railways,
or other industrial enterprises, have be-
hayed in way that revolts the conscience
OF the plain, decent people. Such an atti-
tude cannot be condemned too severely
for men of property should recognize that
they jeopardize the rights of property
when they fail heartily to join in the eff
fort to do away with the abuses of wealth
On the other hand. those who advocate
proper control on behalf of the public.
through the State, of these great corpora
tions, and of the wealth engaged on
ever keep in mind that unless they do
scrupulous justice to the corporation, I'M
less they permit ample profit, and cordial
ly encourage capable men of business so
long as they act with honesty. they are
striking at the root of our national we'll
being; for in the long run, under the mere
pressure of material distress. the people
as a whole would probably go back to the
reign of an unrestricted individualism
Pot fhnr Yhr,atf 70 wz1 h., AZ,
State so drastic and so foolish. conceived
in a spirit of such unreasonable and mar
row hostility to wealth, as to prevent bust
ness operations from being profitable. and
therefore to bring ruin upon the entire
business community, and ultimately upon
the entire body of citizens. We do not
for a moment believe that the problem
will be solved by any short and easy
method. The solution will come only by
pressing various concurrent remedies,
which the federal government alone can
enact and which is absolutely vital in or
der to secure the attainment of our pur-
pose. Many laws are needed. There
should be regulation by the national gov
eminent of the great interstate corpora
tions, including a simple method of ac-
count keeping, publicity, supervision of
the issue of securities, abolition of rebates
and Of special privileges. There should
be short time franchises for all corpora
tions engaged in public business: incud-
ing the corporations which get power from
water rights. There should be national
as well as State guardianship of mines
and forests. The labor legislation herein
after referred to should concurrently be
enacted into law.
To accomplish this. means OF course a
certain increase in the use of-not the Gre
alton of-power by the general government.
The power already exists: it does not have
to be created the only question is wheth-
err IL shall be used or left idle-and mean
while the corpora tions over which the
power ought to be exercised will not re-
main idle Let those who object to this
increase in the use of the only power
available the national power, be frank, and
admit openly that they propose to aban-
don any effort to control the great bust
ness corporations and to exercise super
vision over the accumulation and distribu-
tion OF wealth: for such supervision and
contro! can only come through tfis par
ticular kind of increase of power. We no
more believe in that enpirlcism which de-
mands absolutely unrestrained individual
ism than we do in that empirlcfsm which
clamors for deadening socialism which
would destroy all individual initiative and
would ruin the country with a complete
ness that not even an unrestrained indi-
vdualism itself could achieve. The danger
to American democracy lies not in the least
in the concentration of administrative pow
err in responsible and accountable hands. 1t
lies in having the power insuf1ciently con-
centrated. so that no one can be held re-
sponsible to the people for it's use. Con
centrated power is palpable, visible. re-
sponsible, easily reached, quickly held to
account. Power scattered through many
admnistra tors, many legislators, many men
who work behind and through legislators
and administra tors. is impalpable, is I'M
SEEM is irresponsible. cannot be reached.
cannot be held To account. Democracy is
No. Flt,rss faf.
litical power is scattered among a variety
Of men who work in secret. whose very
names are unknown TO the common people.
1t is not in peril from any man who de-
rivcs authority from the people, who eX-
ercses it in sight of the people, and who
is from time to time compelled to give an
account OF its exercise to the people.
Labor.
There are many matters affecting labor
and the status of the wageworker to which
| should like to draw your attention. but
an exhaustive discussion of the problem in
all its aspects is not now necessary. This
administration is nearing its emo and.
moreover. under our form Of government
the solution OF the problem depends upon
the action of the States. a. much as upon
the action of the nation believe in Il
steady effort, or perhaps 1t would be more
accurate TO stay in steady efforts in maay
different directions. TO bring about eondi-
ton OF affairs under which the men who
work with hand or with brain, the laborers.
the superinteudents the men who produce
for the market and the men who ind a
market for the articles produced, shall own
a far greater share than at present of the
wealth they produce. and be enabled to
invest il in the tools and instruments BY
which ali the work is carried on. As far as
possible | hope frank recognition
OF the advantages conferred by machinery,
organization and division of labor, accom-
panied by an effort to bring about a larger
share in the ownership of wageworker OF
il.K=sat mill "a In for lie
simply means that we wish TO see the farm
own his own land: we do not wish to see
the farms large that they become the
property of absentee landlords who farm
them by tenants, nor vet so small that the
farmer becomes like European peasant,
Again. the depoSitors In our savings banks
now number over one-tenth of our entire
population. These are all capitalists, who
through the savings hanks loan their
money 10 the workerS-that is, in many
cases to themselves-to carry on their va
rious industries. :he more we increase
their number. the more we introduce the
principles of cooperation into indus
try. Every increase in the number II small
stockholders in corporations is good thing,
for the same reasons and where the EN-
ployes are the stockholders the result is
particularly good. Very much of this move
ment must be outside OF anything that can
be accomplished by legislation but legfs-
lation can do good deal. Postal savings
banks will make it easy for the poorest TO
keep their savings In absolute safety The
regulation of the national highways must be
such that they shall SeENe all the people
with equal justice. Corporate finances
must be supervised so as TO maze il far
safer than ut present for the man of small
means TO invest his money in stocks. There
must be prohibition OF child labor. diminu-
ton Of woman labor. shortening OF hours of
all mechanical labor. stock watering should
be prohibited. and stock gambling so far
as is possible discouraged. There should
be a progressive inheritf Ice tax on large
fortunes Industrial education shculd be
encouraged. As far possible we should
tighten the burden of taxation on the small
man We should put a premium upon
thrift hard work and business energy out
these qualities cease TO be the main fac
tors in accommodating a fortune long before
that fortune reaches a point where IL would
be seriously affected by any inheritance tax
such as | propose. Ii Is eminenfly right
that the nation should TX the terms upon
which the great fortunes are inherited
They rarely do any good and they often do
harm TO those who inherit them in their
entirety
Protection for Wage Workers.
There should no longer be any paltering
with the question Of taking care OF the