Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1911-06-14
TURNING TO THE RIGHT.

TURNING TO THE RIGHT.
Judge Gary Of TIE steel trust is not
more intelligent than many of his fel
luw-citizens. But when he declares
that the only solution OF the trus,
problem is found in strict government
regulation and control, the fact that
he has made money in the trusts rec
onciles that opinion to many who have
called it radicalism when advanced by
men of equal intelligence, but not in.
| tercsted in trust investments. This
is one CT the strangest phases and
manifestations of the average ICON.
servative" mind, which does not rea-
son in terms of logic. or in terms OF
fact. but sticks to it that everything
is "radicalism" until approved by men
whose monied possessions make 1t
easy to conclude that they never can
be radicals. Then. for such minds,
what was the radicalism of yester-
day becomes the conservatism of to-
morrow
Judge Gary is undoubtedly conserv>
alive in urging government regulation
and control of trusts as the only solu'
ton of the problem. Half Il dozen
years ago it could be seen that new
conditions in the Industrial world
forced as results Of steam and cleo.
tricity and facilitated communication,
with the accompanying opportunities
for control of capital had given rise
to great industrial combinations. II
this was natural, it was not less na,.
ural that monopolies. resulting from
these combinations. would become op
pressive unless restrained by consti-
tuted authority. The problem was
whether We should reach restraint
through the saulutary but slow proc
,esses of the law, or whether over
reaching greed would force old his.
tory to repeat ITSELF 1t could then be
seen that combination had come to
stay, and that it would stay either as
a result of intelligent regulation and
conserving the public welfare
while still leaving opportunity for in.
dividual ambition and initiative, and
the individual life, or as a result OF
shock and conflict, to be followed ny
leveling processes. the wiping out OF
the man, the exaltation of the state
and the lengthening or shortening Of
people to fit the measure of one great
Procrustean bed in which we would
all lie down together.
Average conservatism was incapable
OF realizing or understanding this. Only
the high, intelligent, conservatism
which knows the game, and which,
without any financial interest of it's
own to serve. aims to serve patriotic
ends as the highest ends attainable,
has been capable of seeing all of the
situation, what it is. what it threatens,
and what it promises, if intelligently
handled. We presume there is nobody
now to seriously contend that combi-
nations of capital organized to pro-
mote economies in management and
facilitate exchanges, thus, logically re-
ducing costs of product and distribu-
ton, will ever be wiped out. They
can and will be made to serve the
highest public uses. Recent supreme
court decisions are pointing the way,
but Judge Gary seems to go beyond
these in indicating the necessity OF
more advanced steps in legislation, for
more broadly defining, and more wide.
ly extending. the power of the govern
ment over them. There are number
of encouraging signs that, though we
stood long at the parting of the ways,
we are turning to the right.