The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1911-12-22
70 1T a CRIME TO DO A BIG susI.
NEss7


The fabulous aggregations of capt.
tai that have been brought together
in individual units never could have
been accomplished except by cor
porations. and nothing can take their
place.
Our railroads steamships, electric
fractions, electric lighting and gas
plants, telephones. telegraphs, sub
ways. manufacturing plants, CONNER
cial enterprises, towns and cities new
er would have been but for corpora
lions. The United States would
practically be dessert and New York
a village but for corporate capital,
and It alone has made the United
States the wealthiest and greatest ma
ton on earth.
British corporations have the max
imum of powers with the minimum of
restriction; United States corpora
tions have the minimum of powers
with the maximum of restriction.
Why this difference? Which is the
best for the body polite? In consid-
ering this question we must trace the
evolution of trade and commerce as
transacted and developed by individ-
uals, partnership, royal charters and
corporations.
In Great Britain the people could
and do transact and invest their mon
ey in any business they choose. AS
larger capital was required partner
ships were formed, first under oral
agreements, then written, then under
royal charter partnerships, occasion
ally monopolistic but generally not,
and the monopolistic ceased to be so
almost from the start. Under all
these there were no restrictions, but
the individuals composing them,
whether original or substitutional,
were for all time jointly and severally
liable for all debts without limit. The
Bank of Scotland and all the older
banks, the Royal Exchange Insurance
Company and all the older insurance
companies, were under royal charters
and the unlimited joint and several
liability of their members existed I'M
til some years ago.
The state did not compel these
partnerships, banks and insurance
companies to obtain royal charters;
it was unnecessary for them to do so.
Except for the privilege of note issue,
which the Bank of England, the Scot
fish and Irish banks had and still
have, they could, as others did, con-
duct their business without such royal
charters, but the partners considered
it added to their prestige, just the
same as certain tradesmen advertise
~Purveyors to his Majesty, the King"
And for the additional reason that it
was generally considered that royal
charters limited the liability of the
partners to their original capital in
vestment; it was not until about
twenty years ago that it was legally
decided that their liability was I'M
limited; as a result nearly all the
royal charter partnerships reorganiz-
ed under the British companies act.
The British government, recogniz-
ing that partnership royal charters
would unduly increase in number as
larger aggregations of capital were
required for trade and commerce,
passed the companies act providing
for the incorporation of partnerships,
with or without limited liability, at
the discretion of the original partners.
under which all corporations must be
registered except railroads, which
must be organized under special act
of parliament or royal charter.
The British companies act recogniz-
es that the shareholders are only
partners without limit as to number,
regards corporations as an aggrega-
tion of individuals banded together
for the common good to engage in
any business, one or more, as they
I'm they discretion may desire to risk
their capital in, but it requires them
20 state in their articles of associa-
ton the powers Their desire to take
and the different kinds of business
they intend to engage in.
The British government does not
consider registration under the COM
panies act as a grant, privilege or
franchise from the state, but only as
providing a registration bureau where
the public can ascertain what powers
and liabilities the partners, members
or shareholders have undertaken.
Maximum of powers and minimum
of restriction is the motto and key.
stone of the Mother of Parliaments
and corporations. Who ever heard OF
a corporation organizing under any
OF the states of the United States un.
less compelled to. AS the British flag
flies on ships of all nations, includ
ing America, so the British corpora.