The evening world., 1911-09-18

NOT come winch IItt COIiVuNlNith ~ pu'A
ness Is an impossibility or when strict
government regulation is absolutely neo-
: essary In business,
p" Referring TO william J. Brytn's criti-
b cis,ns. the President said:
b wow, Z would like to ask Mr.. Bryan
or Any Of me other pubhcists and
u Suristr VIC nave been dsnouncins this
opinion a. the surrender OF the rights
9 Of the people and . usurpstion OF judi
ciai power to tell the public what par
ticular contract or restraint OF inter
state trade he would condemn which
wouid not be condsmnad within this
definition Of the Court. The difficulty
With the literal construction Of the
statute 10 that IL would d%enouno a
1, srsat many minor or incidental re-
straints OF trade, which mad ths stat
, ute ridiculous ana weakened lite sneot
and lent support 70 the criticisms and
oontsmptuous treatment Of the statute
By those who we're opposed TO its pas.
saG and enforcement.
HITS OUT At "A TOILETTE.
For quick action President Taft ut
this point took the swing ut sena-
ter La Toilette by referring to a recent
message TO Congress In which he spoke
OF good and bad trusts. Ills quotation
follows:
They point with force to certain no.
.torious trusts as having grown into
power through criminal methods by tho
use of illegal rebates and plain cheat
ing. and by various acts utterly viola
tive OF business honesty or morality,
and urge the establishment OF some
legal line OF separation by which Grim
NAL trusts" of this kind can he pun
-ished. and they. on the other hand, be
permitted under the law to carry ON
their business. Now the public, and es-
.pecially the business public, ought TO
rid themselves of the idea that such a
distinction Is practicable or can be In:
into the statute.
Certainly, under the present antitrust
law no such distinction exists. 1t has
been proposed. however. that the word
reasonable should be made a part
II the statute, and then hat 1t should
be left to the court TO say what Is a
reasonable restraint OF trade. what Is
a reasonable suppression Of competition.
what Is a reasonable monopoly. | ven
hsht " AAiAi NAtaA NhAR 80 W 49, aAh'
the hands of the court a power inn
possible 10 exercise on any consistent
principle which VIII insure the uni
formIty of decision essential to just
Judgment. II In to thrust upon the
courts a burden that they ave no pre-
csdents to enable them TO carry. and
70 give them a power approaching the
arbitrary, the abuse OF which might in
Solve our whole judicial system In dis.
aster.
This paragraph has boon quoted and
spread on the record OF the Senate on
the motion OF n Senator who considered
this to be at variance with the decisions
Of the Supreme Court. Instead of being
those decisions.
Il repeat again that IN spite OF all
the denuneiations that We nave heard
Of the decisions of the supreme Court
In the Standard OH and the Tobacco
cases. there IL not one VIII, has criticised
them I. 4 can formulate u contract In
restraint of trade that ought 10
come within the statute tina does rat
come within Z under the decision OF
the Supreme Court.
Now. I desire to call attention to q
very broad distinction tina many per.
sons have failed TO draw.or perceive be-
tween a reasonable construction o. tho
statute which the supreme CDur; has
insisted upon md the Introduction OF
the word reasonable Ia the statute
so az TO lead TO n result by which r1m-
blnations for the purpose Of restraining
trade with a view to controlling prices
and maintaining "A moopoly could b.
held to be ~rcasoa5le and thus lawful.
Until the decision OF tine Supreme
Court In these last two cas- there was
a clearly defines hope in the minds of
many business mon who had reached
the conclusion that II was Impossible
TO conduct business on a FREQ competi-
tive basis, and that II was necessary to
secure monopolistic ccltrDi OF prices
and competition IN order 10 make bust
meas reasonably profitable. that In some
way or other lac statute could he on
strued so as 10 make IL apply only TO
unreasonable ~monOpolics and unreason-
able exclusion Of competition and con-
troll OF prices.