The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1911-04-13

NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. AN
40 ~PusLiclIY
SAYS BOTH HERE 10 s|TllIAY'l



Public regulation Of public service
corporations has come 70 stay. Is
ought 70 have come and IL ought "a
stay. That ~ the nat and u~peQuiyocal
assertion Of Theodore N. Van. pr0si5A
dent Of both the Ameriesssry Islsphone
and Telegraph company and thS
Western Union Telegraph corapanya
Il camA In tho form of his annual ~
port to the seventy Thousand stock
holders Of the two great cr-porAtonsg
Although Mr.. Wills aarnGecyn a Ssalg
publicity IN connection with thA Affairs
of such concerns was won UNDER
stood, nobody III financial circles had
anticipated 20 frank an Ayowal %
full public rights In the shaping pf
fhedr genera conduct. Il cane cnnse.a
Qnently a. = surprise. not only bel
caSise Of tts novelty and sQuarencsss
but also on account Of the unqualified
acquieacence Of 4 board OF directors
cCmrriaanx such eminent and conserv-
Gttve fnanciera az Robert Winson 81
Muder, Peabody q Co. and Henry ~.
Hgginson OF Hoston, Henry Fl Davi-
tpn Of ]. r. Morgan q Co; SENATOR
q. Murray Crane, George r. Baer, III
Jefferson Coolidge Jr., Norman w!
Harris. John I. Waterbury and others.
President Wallis declaration Is hers
tlded as the frst recognition hy those
a high corporate authority q the 5us-
tice OF the demand that the public
be regarded as virtual partners In all
mztters that pertain to tho ommon
welfare. He ,es directly to tho
point. ,.',''y sasE1
Public control or regulation Of
pubic ssryice corporations by pernaas
nent commissioning" he says, has
come and come I o stay. Control, or
regulation, to be effective means pub
licity; 1t means semi-public Discus
sion and consideration before actions
It means everything which IL the OPP
posite OF and Inconsistent with effsc-
tive competition. Compotition-ag-
gressive. effective compctition-means
strife. industrial warfare; II means
contention; 1t sftentimes means tall.
ing advantage Of or resorttng to any
means that the Conscience OF the CON,
t~estants OF tho degree Of the enforce
ment OF the Laws will permit
Aggressive competition means
duplication Of plant and Investment
The ultimate object Of such compete;
ton ia n%nsaesslcn cs L a aeeiiSs
wholly or partially; therefore ID
means either ultimate combination on
such basis and with ouch prices AZ
will cover past losses, or 1t means
loss Of return on investment, and
eventual loss Of capital. However II
results, all costs Of aggressive, TN.
controlled competition are eventually
borne. directly or indirectly, by the
public. Competition which Is not sg,
gresaiye, presuppooAs cooperative ati
ton. understandings, agreements
which result IN general uniformity Oh
harmony Of action, which, In fact, 10
not competition but is combination.
nnstsh!e ~. sss 4 time eMscrivc.
When thoroughly understood It will
be found that control" will givo
nor OF the benefits and public ad.
vantaEes. which are expected to be-
obtained through such ownership, and
will obtain them without the public
burden OF either the public oficei
holder or public debt or operating
deficit.
When through a wise and 1ndt.
cious state control and regulation all
the advantages without any OF the
disadvantages OF state ownership
arc secured. state ownership ID
doomed"
ri Mr.. Vail is right" Gays Harpers
Weekly. in a concise summing-up.
'thhn 1t esems pretty plain that we
are entered upon q new era in both
economics and politics. And 1t is high
time We did If evolution Is to sup
plant revolution as an efficient force
in the development of civilization"