Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-12-05

prosecution OF corporations whose pros
perity or destruction affects the comfort
not only of stockholders but of millions
of wage earners, employees and associated
tradesmen must necessarily tend to dis
turb the confidence of the business COM
immunity, to dry up the now moving
sources of capital from its places of
boarding. and produce a halt In our pres
ent prosperity that will cause suffering
and strained circumstances among the
innocent many for the faults of the guilty
few. The question which / wish in this
message to bring clearly to the considera-
ton and discussion of Congress is wheth-
err, In order to avoid such q possible bust
ness danger, something cannot be done
by which these business combinations
may be offered q means, without great
financial disturbance, of changing the
character, organization. and extent of
of the law under federal control and
supervision. securing compliance with the
ANTITRUST statute.
Generally. in the industrial combina-
lions called trusts, the principal business
is the sale of goods in many states and
in foreign markets; in other words. the
interstate and foreign business far ex-
ceeds the business done in any one state.
This fact will justify the federal govern
ment in granting q federal charter to
such combination to make and sell in
irtersta.e aha orei~n com nerce tie prod
ucts of useful manufacture under such
limitations as will secure a compliance
With Jte antitrust laH. 1t is possible .
to frame statute that while 1t offers
protection to federal company against
harmful, vexatious and unnecessary in
vasion by the states. 1t shall subject 1t to
reasonable, taxation and control by the
states with respect to its purely local
business.
should be prohibited from acquiring and
holding stock in other corporations lex
cept for special reasons, upon approval
by the proper federal authority, thus
avoiding the creation 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.
.rIf the prohibition Of the antitrust act
is to be effectively enforced, it is essential
that the national government shall pro-
vide for the creation of national cor
porations to carry on legitimate busl-
ness throughout the United States. The
conflicting laws of the different states OF
the Union with ,cspeo. to foreign cor
porations make 1t difficult. il not impos-
sibie, for one corporation to comply with
their requirements so as to- carry on
business in number OF different states.
I renew the recommendation OF the en-
actment of g. general law providing for
the voluntary formation Of corporations
to engage in trade and commerce among
the states and with foreign nations.
Every argument which was then ad-
vanced for such law, and every eX-
PLANTATION which was at that time offered
to possible objections. have been con-
frmed by our experience since the en-
forcement of the antitrust statute has
resulted in the actual dissolution OF ac-
tive commercial organizations.
It in even more manifest now than 1t
was then that the denunciation OF con-
spiracies in restraint of trade should not
and does not mean the denial Of oreanf-
cations large enough to be intrusted with
our interstate and foreign trade 1t has
been made more clear now than it was
then that purely negative statute ike
the antitrust law may well be supple
mented by specific provisions for the
building up and regulation of legitimate
national and foreign commerce.