The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1910-10-06

great troubles of our Institutions is
that We have so many good things.
we do not appreciate what We do
have. Our great prosperity, bound
less opportunities and great wealth
have created so many millionaires
that another has said We have too
many rich men. l don't know about
that, as We are probably better of
by having more riches than by hay-
ing the more poverty. There are.
however, certain drawbacks to the
possession OF great prosperity and
great wealth, some OF which. gentle
men. doubtless come within the
sphere or your investigations. Some
of our trusts and combinations neel
investigation. II so, we have an
antitrust law, and 1t is your duty to
investigate any violations of it. The
establishment OF our great industries
is not to be condemned, hut when by
unfair means they crowd out and de-
stroy fair competition and put upon
the people the necessity of paying in
creased prices, without no opposi-
ton. they establish bad trust
which comes within the purvlew of
the law.
Principals Are Simple.
In the midst OF our tremendous
development and prosperity, the old,
old principles of honesty should not
be forgotten. Millions of pages Of
text books and of court decisions are
read in our courts of law when cases
are tried so that established prece-
dents may be followed, and some
people begin to think that the appli-
cation OF justice depends upon the
brightest and wittiest lawyer who
can quote the largest number of
iprecendents. But this is not so. The
principles of the law are very sim
Pile and firmly established. They
were founded by the Son of the Living
God, centuries ago, when he said the
first great commandment is to love
the Lord thy God, and the second to
love thy neighbor as myself. II
men should carry those principles
out, there would be hardly any need
for grand iuries as there would be
little or no crime.
The three cardinal principles upon
which the law is based is that every
man should live uprightly, hurt no
one and render unto every man his
Just due. 1t is upon violation of
these three cardinal principles that
we have the great mass OF litigation
springing UP in our courts of law.
The government cannot enforce
these principles unless 1T is support
ed by the power of public sentiment.
The liquor dealer cannot be honest
because his business is dishonest. 1t
is not honest to lead mothers sons
into the liquor saloon and send them
home to be curse to her instead of
a blessing. The fact is. 1T is better
to license petty thievery than to H.
cense that robbery OF our citizen
ship.
The great corporations won't be
honest If they can crowd out compe-
titlon or discriminate against the
people. But. render unto every
man his just due" There is nothing
honest in assessing railroad three
times the valuation of what its prop
erty would cost new just because It
is a railroad. l have not much re-
spect for the man who finds fault in
everything and who goes around
among his neighbors back-biting and
slandering. There are thousands OF
honest business men in this country
seeking to obey the law in its true
sense and the man who con-
dennis corporations simply because
they are corporations is lopsided. I'M
balanced-not crazy. but with a
screw loose in his mentality. The
country would not occupy It's great
position in history today were 1t not
for the corporatins. But the true
rule Is that every corporation and
every individual should live honestly,
hurt no one and render unto every
man his just due.
Unlawful Labor Trusts.
terms, they are violating the
That is the foundation of all wealth,
of all society. We have the right to
labor for whom we please and no
set OF men has any right to dictate
how you shall labor or upon what
terms or conditions you shall sell or
dispose of your labor. Whenever
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