Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-10-07
when a Court Is Trying 10 Do
Its Duty and Interpret Law
As Il Ought 10 Be, | Resent
Attacks with Indignation. "
Pres. Taft Makes Plain Talk al
PocatelIo, Idaho.

Poeatello. Idaho, Oct I'm a speech
before the Chamber of Commerce to-
day President Taft bitterly assailed
the critics. of the United States SUI
preme court and asserted anew his
eiews as to the relations of govern
ment TO business.
Il love judges and I love courts"
SAID the President. They are my
ideals on earth that typifv what we
shall meet afterward in Heaven un-
der n just God. And when court is
doing Its duty, when it is trying to
interpret the law as 1t ought TO be-
TO have ii condemned and attacked
an1 its motive questioned for mere po-
litical purposes. without any solid
ground for attack, goes To my heart
and / resent it with deep indigna-
ton"
Mr.. Taft spoke with far more feeling
than he put into his Detroit and Wa
terloo speeches, but along the same
lines. He said he had received many
criticisms on the point but as yet he
had failed to receive an answer 20 his
challenge to w. ]. Bryan and other
publicists to cite a single combination
in restraint of trade which ought to
be condemned under the supreme
courts Interpretation of the antitrust
law in the Standard Oil ana the To-
bacco Trust cases.
What distinguishes this country
from any other one," said the Presi-
dent. us the supreme court that we
have in Washington, that oft has
stood between us and errors that
might have been committed that
/, would have been greatly injurious to
this country; and to turn upon that
court and to question its motives and
to attack 1t seems 10 me to lay the
axe at the root of the tree of our civ
ilization"
Mr.. Taft referred to the supreme
courts disposal of the Standard Oil
and the Tobacco cases as two great
decisions"
They were two of the greatest
trusts that ever existed" he said. and
in working out of the decree the
courts had to make remedy. The
Standard Oil presented all the phases
of illegaIity and criminality necessary
to establish a monopoly ut "A time
when they did not feel the necessity
for conceaiing their methods or their
motives. The Tobacco Trust represent
ed an organization made in anticipa-
out by the advice of cunning lawyers
in order to avoid it's operations. But
against them the decree Of the supreme
court has been pronounced"
Mr.. Taft said 1t was unfortuna he
that the country had got into condi-
ton that had required remedy like
this. \ remedy Of an evil. he added.
was bound to produce for time,
not business disaster but difficult
situation, that might make business
slow. But after the solution had been
worked out, he saw no reason why the
country should not go ON to greater
and greater prosperity.
ITO one in my place" said the Pres
ident, there is no discretion with ref
erenco to the trial of cases brought
to the attention of the Executive as
violations of the law. The prosecutions
must go on. 1t is not for the Executive
to say he can withhold criminal pros
ecutions, or any kind of prosecutions,
just to help business. Business must
reform itself and those executive du-
ties must be performed under the oath
of office that | took and under the
oath that those under me took.
But when that part of the bus
mess community that thought that the
antitrust statute did not mean any
thing understands that it is to be en-
forced, then we may reach a solution
that viii enable the business commu-
nifty to settle down on a proper and
legitimate basis. I hope the time is
near at hand when we must get to-
gether FOR prosperity. We must elm
mate, SO far as we can, this desire to
attack wealth earned by thrift and
gathered by foresight, attention and
industry, because that is to set up a
feeling that BODIES no good for the re-
suit.
Il believe we are going on to a
greater future. If we had allowed
these ordinations to go on and de-
velop, the only remedy would have been
to change by force the power thus con-
centrated in the hands of a few in
dividuals to the state and then we
should have had state socialism. 1t
was the inevitable result of the move
ment toward trusts unless broken up.
Nov we can get back to compeu :
ton. We must get back to competition
as an element in this country. II II is
impossible then.ilet us goi to- socialism,
Continued on PAGE sTwelye)