The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-04-10
ions doing business within its limits,

lions doing business within its limits,
make it necessary for a manufacture !
ing or trading corporation engaged
in interstate M to take out a
federal license before it shall be per-
mitted to control as much as twenty
five per cent. of the product in which
il deals, the license to protect the
public from watered stock and TO
prohibit the control by such corpor-
alton of more than lifty per cent. OF
the total amoun of any prOduct con-
suBad in the United States, and,
third, Il law compelling such licensed
corporations to sell to all purchasers
iii all parts of the country on the
same terms, after making due allow
ance for cost of transportation.
We welcome the belated promise
of tariff reform, now offered by a
part of the republican party, as a
tardy recognition of the righteous
this question, but the people cannot
safely entrust the execution of this
important work to a party which is
so obligated to the highly protected
interests that it postpones relief I'M
til after the election. And we call
attention to the significant bact that
the promise now made by those re-
publicans who favor tariff revision
is wholly vitiated by the use of the
very qualifying words under which
the present tariff iniquities have
grown up.
We favor an immediate revision
of the tariff by the reduction of i'm
port duties. Articles entering into
competition with articles controlled
by trusts should be placed upon the
free list; material reductions should
be made in the tariff upon the neces-
saries of life, and reductions should
be made in such other schedules as
may be necessary to restore the tar
lift to a evenu basis.
We favor a graduated income and
an inheritance tax as part of our
revenue system, and we urge the sub
mission of a constitutional amend
ment specifically authorizing con-
gress to levy and collect a tax upon
individual and corporate incomes, to
the end that wealth may bear it's pro-
portionate share of the burdens of
the federal government. We favor a
graduated national Inheritance tax
to reach the Swollen fortunes" al
ready in existence, but we believe
that it is better to permanently r
vent Swollen fortunes" by abolish
ling the privileges and favoritism upon
which they are based.
We assert the right of congress to
exercise complete control over in
terstate commerce, and we assert the
right of each state to exercise Just
as complete control over commerce
within its borders. We demand such
an enlargement of the powers of ma.
tional and state railway commissions
as may be necessary to give full pro.
lection to persons and places from
discrimination and extortion. We
believe that both the nation and the
various states, should, first, ascer
tain the present value of the rail
roads, measured by the cost of re
fictitious capitalization; third, pro
sue of any more watered stock o.
icticttous capitalization; third, pro
hibit the railroads FROM engaging ii
any business which brings them int,
competition with their shippers; ant
fourth, reduce transportation rate
until they reach a point where the.
will yield only a reasonable return
lon the present value of the roads
such reasonable return being define,
as a return sufficient to keep the stool
of the roads at par when such road
are honestly capitalized.
The injury done by issues of wa
tered stock Is more clearly seen an,
better understood since the shrink
age in the market value of sucl
stock as precipitated a Widespread,
panic and brought enormous loss t
the country.
The panic has also emphasized tn
necessity for legislation protecting
the wealth producers from spoilatiol
at the hands Of the stock gambler
and the gamblers in farm products
The present financial stringenc
furnishes additional proof that tn
republican leaders r either unwill
ing or incompetent to protect the In
terests of the general public. The
have SO linked US to Wall Street tina
the sins of the spectators are visite'
upon the entire country.
We favor the postal savings BAN
and, In additional, for the better reg
VI A0 " IA0 4AOIOS
tion of bank deposits. The govern
ment demands security when it de
posts public money in a bank, an,
we believe that the security Of tn
individual depositor who intrusts hi
earnings to a bank should be as per
feet as the governments security.
We oppose both the Aldrich bill
and the Fowler bill, and believe that
insofar as the needs Of commerce re
quire an emergency currency, sue
currency should be issued and COZ
lrolled by the federal government
and that it should be loaned upo
adequate security and at a rate of in
te-est which will compel its retire
ment when the emergency is passed
And we also favor the issuing by tn
federal government of all pape
money.
We demand. further. that favorit
ism in the deposit of treasury fund
shall be abolished and that surplu
revenues shall be deposited at con
petitive rates upon sufficient securit
and fairly distributed throughout til