The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-08
Policy Will E in Revealing ,rlsr of Problem - Compel
 Idea Out of Date
By CHARLES G. DAWEs President Central Trust CompaA
 Chieano 2

tNote This Is the second of a SC ts of articles now being publisher in The Age Herald on. the trust question. The ar ,cie9 win embrace every phase the s.bjecp.
 The trouble with the efforts the government is making to cope with the trust problem arises from the facf tnal tne underlying assumption of the sheI- man antitrust law. under which Us ae- tions are brought, is that the policy or
 trestrioted competition still subserves ;ao best interests of the public.
 The steps the government has taken
 have not had the effect of increasing
 competition, but in most cases of estap-
 shing preeedents which will interfere with proper methods of business now ai- s most universally followed. is assumed
 ly many that the present policy of the
 department of justice of attack under
 the Sherman antitrust law upon present
 methods of doing business IS a general
 ofe. s |a Whatever may be the inference to be drawn from the remarks of the Attorney General as to his future procedure, the ieot remains that he has barely passed the edge of the field of his possible ac- tIvlty The alarming feature Of the sis- uaiion Is that with nothing practically demonstrated in the way of relief to the prtlic through his past actions In a conn
 raratively small number of possible
 cases, the indirect destruction of values
 and the depressing effect upon business
 which has resulted point to great fu- ture injury to business when the depart .nent of justice fairly enters it's crusade. Peril in State Action Also l And if there be potency for evil in the policy of the general government pro- ceeding against corporations doing an linierstate business. we mas pfaperis be Il prehensive wien the attorneys of the different counties of the states, follow 1 ing the example of the government and
 acting under the existing local and unen- loleed antitrust laws, attack local in-z dustries operating under trade agree meGts
 Let no one underestimate the number of trade agreements in existence In the t~ited States. The United States consul lar reports, state that in 1905 there were
 %s cartels or agreements in restrain of
 trade in existence in Germany, where ,bey are encouraged in behalf of the general public and have no political op-
 position
 1 believe 1t no exaggeration to state that in the United States we have five cartels to every one in Germany. When
 the agreements among local retailers district wholesalers, local and district
 manufacturers. publishers, labor unions.
 contractors, employers, and employees are q nsidered, existing as they do through out almost the entire country. some req
 sonaole in their nature and some unrea-
 sonable. an idea may be gained of how far the business interests of this coun- uy have already adopted the new order O. cooperation as against the old one of unrestricted competition.
 Two Methods Most Discussed So settled a thing in the business of
 the country is this new order that the
 business man Is only beginning to real
 ize that the system has received perem- toIy challenge. He is coming to under stand that this attack of the department Of justice is not simply an attack upon the rich or upon great corporations, it Is an attack upon industry and the sys-
  The two most discussed methods of dealing with the trust question are tue m, thod proposed by the radicals and the Taft method. The radical recommenda- ton seems to be to amend the S..erman
 antitrust law so that the flexibility inn parted to it by the recent decision of the United States supreme court is de- SD eyed and all agreements ill restraint oi trade, reasonable or unreasonable, are made Illegal
 That such plan Is even suggested in-
 .,lt ates the confidence felt by radical pol ilicans in the success of a political cru :aoe against corporations which must draw it's strength from the passions and pi ejudices rather than from the reason of our people.
 Il hardly seems worth while to discuss a, length thls proposal Our people are
 too intelligent to wish to hark back to the old methods of unrestricted compe- ttion. These have gone forever like an- tiquated methods of transportation and fnanufa cture.
 Change in Form cf Ownership | The Taft method seems to be the invok- | ing of the sherman antitrust law to dis l sotve consolidated corporations into tneir l former constituent corporations, under the | Il cory that such separatio nwill tend to restore the former condition of compe- 'tr,. nctWcefl tIelil. lut result oI tue SON- l ernments suits thus far brought in this attempt to fly in the face of the rristi- he law of commercial evolution. seems to have been change in the form of ownership and control and not in the
 faci of ownership or the substance of control. Consider the Northern Securities suit,
 where substantially the same sci of own CTS find themselves in control of the same railroads through their possession
 of stock certificates in the Great North
 orn and Northern Pacific railroads. in-
 stead of one certificate of stock in the Northern Securities company. Does any one of business sagacity ex- cept that through division of the evil
 fences of ownership the undisturbed own ership itself will cease to exercise its rights and function?
 Will Not Fight Each Other
 We may as soon expect the tides to
 turn backward as to expect .hs scattered
 constituents of the old Standard oil
 company. owned and controlled by the same interests. to fight each other. You