Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1911-10-04

That idea shoots wide Of the mark.
The trusts have proven to be false
the old doctrine that, "Competition
is the life Of trade" and established
the economic truth, that co-opera-
ton is efficient in making production
cheaper. The problem Of beneftting
the people in general, must be met
on that economic fact. Legislation
must deal with the problem on that
basis. That is why I suggest the
creation Of a national industrial
commission to investigate and make
suggestions. The problem can never
be met by prosecutions to dissolve
organization. We can however, pro-
vide for prosecution and punishment
for extortion, the same as we do for
other crimes. But otherwise we
must meet the trust problem by a
new system of construction rather
than by destruction of great means
Of economy. But the construction
must be for the people in general in
stead Of for a few to get everything.
Our financial system must be re-
modelled so that money, credits, and
banking will respond to the necessi-
ties Of commerce without Interrupt
ton or even fear Of panics. Econo-
mically there is. no excuse for a f.
nancial system that is itself a bur-
den, and in remolding, the greatest
care is required to prevent the sys-
TEN employed being used as means
of further Capitalization of wealth,
and the plan adopted should pass
us from the present system to a new
by such gradual evolution as to avoid
business depression. We have risks
enough in the natural course of
things without giving the Wall Street
bunch power to pounce down on us
every time they see chance to
scalp for a million dollars or so.
By fixing on capital legal privi-
lege to certain profits, the courts
have furnished a precedent, though
thus far one sided, for government
control, but whatever the precedent,
the government must take the powers
that are essential to have in support
of the common welfare. We have
reached the time of necessity for
control in some cases, government
ownership in others, and there
should be no hesitation to meet the
emergency with legislation along
these lines. We have the Territory
Of Alaska, portion Of which has
been lost through bad administra-
ton. Alaska was bought, paid for,
and is still principally owned by the
government. Its resources should be
developed by the government for the
people in general. The government
owned natural resources in Alaska
and elsewhere, should not be disposed
Of for private exploitation.
The system Of the Executive alone
appointing all the members on inn
portant commissions and boards,
having in charge Investigations and
other public business, has in practice
demonstrated beyond question that
boards and commissions thus APP
pointed are too partisan. The sys-
TEN should be modified to divide the
responsibility between the President,
Senate, and the House Of Represen-
tatives, so that each would appoint
some member on every committee,
and to be elected by the latter two
without the intervention Of caucus to
prostitute the popular choice.
Revise the tariff downward. The
long delay is inexcusable. The Presi-
dent vetoed the best work Of the ex-
ira session and put himself behind
the tariff board for his excuse. The
people elected him and he appointed
the tariff board. Congress is charg-
ed with the duty Of passing tariff
bills and it is the Presidents duty to
sign them unless he shows them to
be wrong. It is a monstrous thing
to give the tariff board power to de-
lay. That board collects informa-
ton for the people, for Congress-,
and for the President, and was not
created to form a wedge between the
people and their direct servants. The
board may serve a useful purpose
only by doing its work. f it shall
be used as an excuse for delay, it
will soon be abolished and rightly so.
The last Congress had all the evil
dence taken for the previous extra
session besides that taken at the last
session, and was in good shape to
81. A permanent national Industrial
commission should be created to-
study and report on the industrial
condition, and to suggest methods