The daily sentinel., 1910-01-07

antitrust law, we ought of course,
pot forget that laws makes unlawful
methods of carrying on business
which before its passage, were re-
garded as evidence of business Sagac-
| ity and success, and that they were
denounced In this act. not because of
their intrinsic morality but because
| of the dangerous results toward
| which they tended, the concentration
of industrial power in the hands of
| the few, leading to oppression snd
| injustice. In dealing, therefore, with
| methods condemned by the statute
many of the men who have used the
! for the purpose of maintaining n
profitable business, we may well
7 facilitate change by them in the
method of doing business and enable
them to bring il back into the zone
of lawfulness without losing to the
country the economy of management
! by which in our domestic trade the
cost of production has been mater
! tally lessened and in competition with
foreign manufacturers our foreign
trade has been greatly increased.
Through all our consideration of
ithis grave question. however. we must
insist that the suppression of com
petition, the controlling of prices and
| the monopoly of attempt to monop-
olize in interstate commerce and busi-
ness are not only unlawful but con-
, trary to the public good and that they
must be restrained and punished un-
til ended.
|, therefore, recommend the enact
! ment by congress of a general law
providing for the formation of cor
porations TO engage in trade and
commerce among the states and with
foreign nations, protecting them from
undue Interference by the states and
regulating their activities 50 as to
prevent the recurrence under national
auspices OF those abuses which have
arisen under state control Such n
law should provide for the issue OF
stock of such corporations 10 an
amount equal only to the cash paid
in on the stock: and If the stock be
issued for property. then at fair
valuation. ascertained under approv-
al and supervision of federal auth
ority, after a full and complete dis
closure of all the facts pertaining to
the value of such property and the
interests therein of the persons 70
whom it is proposed to issue stock in
payment of such property Ii should
subject the real and personal prop
erty only such corporations to the
same taxation as is imposed by the
states within which it may be sltuat-
ed upon other similar property locat-
ed therein and it should require such
corporations to file full and complete
reports of their operations with the
department of commerce and labor at
regular intervals.
Corporations organized under tnis
act should be prohibited from acquir-
ing and holding stock in other cor
porations teXcept for special reasons
upon approval by the proper federal
authorities) thus avoiding the crea-
ton under national auspices of the
holding company with subordinate
corporations in different states, which
has been such an effective agency in
the creation of the great trusts and
monopolies.
If the prohibition of the antitrust
act against combinations in rest raint
of trade is TO be effectively enforced
IL is essential that the national gov
|ernment shall provide for the creation
of national corporations to carry on a
legitimate business throughout the
United States. The conflicting laws
of the different states of the union,
with respect to foreign corporations
make it difficult, If not impossible
for one corporation TO comply with