Dewey County advocate. [volume] (Timber Lake, S.D.) 1910-1913, 1911-04-14
IS HERE TO STAY.
Control and Publicity for Public
Service Corporations.
VERDICT OF PROMINENT MAN
Theodore N. Vail, President Of West.
ern Union and Telephone compa-
nles, Recognizes Rights Of the
American Public,

oOAS iSeuAotAoA VI pubic BSIV1Co
corporations has come to stay. Il
ought to have come and it ought to
stay. That is the nat and uneQuivocal
assertion Of Theodore N. Vail, presi.
dent OF both the American Telephone
and Telegraph company and the West
srn Union Telegraph company. It
came In the form Of his annual 70.
port to the seventy thousand stock
holders Of the two great corporations.
Although Mr.. Wallis advocacy Of full
publicity in connection with the affairs
Of such concerns was we'll understood,
nobody In financial circles had antici.
pated so frank an avowal Of full pub
lie rights in the shaping Of their gen
eral conduct It came consequently as
Q surprise, not only because Of its
novelty and squareness. but also on
account of the unqualified acquies-
cence of board of directors compris.
ing such eminent and conservative
fnanciers as Robert Winson. Of Kid
der, Peabody 4 Co., and Henry L.
Higginson of Boston, Henry p. Davi-
son of ]. P. Morgan & Co.: Senator
w. Murray Crane, George F. Baer.
T. Jefferson Coolidge, Jr.. Norman W.
Harris. John I. Waterbury and others.
President Wallis declaration 10 her.
aided rs the first recognition by those
in high corporate authority Of the jus
tee Of the demand that the public
DO regarded as virtual partners
in all matters that pertain to the COM
mon welfare. He goes directly to the
point
Public control or regulation Of pub
lie service corporations by permanent
commissions" he says. has come and
come to stay. Control or regulation.
to be effective, means publicity:
It means semi-public discussion and
consideration before action; 1t means
everything which Is the oppo-
site of and inconsistent with effective
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES,
effective competition-means strife,
industrial warfare: 1t means conten-
ton; 1t oftentimes means taking ad.
vantage of or resorting to any means
that the conscience Of the contestants
or the degree of the enforcement OF
the laws will permit.
Aggressive competition means du-
plication Of plant and investment The
ultimate object of such competition
is the possession of the field wholly
or partially; therefore it means eth
er ultimate combination on such
basis and with such prices as will
cover past losses, or 1t means loss OF
return on investment, and eventual
loss Of capital. However it results,
all costs of aggressive, uncontrolled
competition are eventually borne. !
or indirectly, by the public.
Competition which is not aggressive,
cooperative action, under. |
standings. agreements, which result
in general uniformity or harmony OF
action, which, in fact, is not competf
ton but is combination. unstable, but
for the time effective. When thor
oughly understood 1t will be found
that control will give more of the
benefits and public advantages, which
are expected to be obtained through
such ownership, and will obtain
them without the public burden Of
either the public ofice-holder or pub
lie debt or operating deficit.
when through a wise and judicious
state control and regulation all the
advantages without any of the disad.
Vantages Of state ownership are So
cured, state ownership is doomed"
III Mr.. Vail is right" says
Harper's Weekly, in q concise sum.
then it seems pretty plain
that we are entered upon a new era in
both economics and politics. And 1t 10
high time We did II evolution Is to
'upplant revolution as an efficient
'orce in the development of civiliza
don"