The Thibodaux sentinel. (Thibodaux, La.) 1905-1912, 1911-04-15
FOR PUBLIC CONTROL
VAIL FOR REGULATION AS WELL
AS PUBLICITY.
SAYS BOTH HERE TO STAY
Frank Recognition of Public Rights
by the President Of Western
Union and Telephone
Companies.

Public regulation Of public servic
corporations has come to stay. l
ought to have come and 1t ought Il
stay. That is the fiat and unequivoca
assertion Of Theodore n. Vail, presi
dent of both the American Telephone
and Telegraph company and thu
Western Union Telegraph company
1t came in the form of his annual re
port to the seventy thousand stock
holders Of the two great corporations
Although Mr.. Wallis advocacy OF full
publicity in connection with the affairs
stood nobody in financial circles had
anticipated 80 frank an ayowal OF
full public rights In the shaping Of
their general conduct. 1t came conse
quently as surprise, not only be
cause of its novelty and squareness
but also on account Of the unqualified
acQuiescence of a board of directors
comprising such eminent and conserv.
alive ffnanciers as Robert Winson OF
Kidder. eabody & Co.. and Henry L.
Higginson of Boston, Henry p Davi-
son of j. P. Morgan & Co.; Senator
W. Murray Crane. George F. Baer, T.
Jefferson Coolidge Jr., Norman w.
Harris, John |. Waterbury and others
President Wallis declaration Is her
aided as the first recognition by those
in high corporate authority of the Jus
tice of the demand that the public
be regarded as virtual partners in all
matters that pertain to the common
welfare. He goes directly to the
point.
Public control or regulation of
public service corporations by perma-
nent commissions" he says. has
come and come to stay Control, or
regulation, to be effective means pub
icity; it means semi-public discus
sion and consideration before action;
1t means everything which is the op-
posite of and inconsistent with effec-
tive competition. Competition-ag-
gressive. effective ompetition-means
strife. industrial warfare; it means
contention; it ofteRtimes means TAX
ing advantage of or resorting to any
means that the conscience Of the con-
testants or the degree of the enforce
ment Of the laws will permit
aggressive competition means
duplication of plant and investment.
The ultimate object of such competi.
ton Is the possession of the field
wholly or partially; therefore 1t
means either ultimate combination on
such basis and with such prices as
will cover past losses. or it means
loss of return on investment, and
eventual loss of capital. However It
results. all costs of aggressive, I'M
controlled competition are eventually
borne, directly or indirectly, by the
public. Competition which is not az
gressiye, presupposes cooperative ac-
ton. understandings, agreements,
which result in general uniformity or
harmony of action, which. in fact, IL |
not competition but IS combination,
unstable. but for the time effective. |
When thoroughly understood it will |
be found that control" will give
more Of the benefits and public adj |
yantages. which are expected to be
obtained through such ownership. and
will obtain them without the public !
burden Of either the public Office
holder or public debt or operating
deficit
when through a wise and Judi
cious state control and regulation all
the advantages without any of the
disadvantages Of state ownership
are secured, state ownership is
doomed
III Mr. Vail is right" says Harper's
Weekly, in concise summing-up
then it seems pretty plain that We
are entered upon a new era in both
economics and politics. And 1t is high
time We did if evolution is to SUD-
plant revolution as an efficient force
In the development OF civilization.