Evening star., 1911-08-09
NAGE[ SCORES GARY
Oisagrees With Steel Head
About Government Control.
DENOUNCES WAR ON TRUST
Secretary Of Commerce and Labor
Deplores Departure From Pres
ent Industrial System.
DEN0UNCES WAR ON TRUST

HOUGHTON, Mich. August 9.-In an
address yesterday at the quarter centen-
nial celebration Of the Michigan College
Of Mines Secretary OF Commerce and
Labor Charles Nagel scored the sugges.
ton OF Judge Gary, chairman of the
board Of directors Of the United States
Steel Corporation. that the federal gov
ernment should exercise control over the
prices Of commodities. Yes said Sec
retary Nagel, in this connection, land
when the government runs the whole
business Gary will try to run the gov.
ernment."
The Secretary vigorously denounced agi.
tation for radical departures from the
present governmental and industrial sys.
tenn OF the United States He said:
IT'S all very well to say let the gov
ernment fix prices, then they can be made
low enough for u.s. but when we under
take to fix prices for the consumer we
must Of necessity Ak prices for the pro.
wages in the factory, and the result is
the government controls every industry,
and when it controls 1t 1t owns it."
Must Protect the Good.
Secretary Nagel said a grave mistake
was being made in approaching the cor.
porat1on problem from only one side
that Of prosecution Of the bad. He saiG
some measures for the protection of tn,
good were imperative il the commerce o.
the United States was to be kept at tn,
position il has reached in the trade of thu
world. Combinations of capital. he said
were vital to the success of the United
States in such competition.
AV,4 h. 90 2nl ssxr-<
boast of our exports and denounce oul
exporters; a corporation cannot learr
whether 1t may go ahead with business
safety without first getting itself sued t.
determine whether it is legal.
/! :! believe the Department OF Commerce
and Labor should act cOnstructively. i,
should be able to say what is legal and
what Is not; to provide form into
which an industry may be cast withou,
q suit and a decree.
MY title is the Secretary OF Com
merce and Labor but let me say right
here that I'm the Secretary Of Labor
but so far as commerce is concerned
well. I'm hardly in the game.
Need Real Commerce Department.
What we need is real department of
commerce. We cannot have 1t on an
appropriation which is no bigger than a
foreign government pays for its con-
sulate in New York city. We should
send agents abroad to gather Industrial
information for the people Of the United
States We are now given $50 200 with
which to send out such agents. 1t Is
high time to point out that We have got
in name a Department of Commerce and
Labor. but not In fact"
Secretary Nagel vigorously attacked the
initiative, referendum and recall. He
said:
"As to recalling Judges. would 1t not
be better to provide that no decision
should be announced as such until 1t is
submitted to the public? Then they could
recall the Judge before the harm was
done. We might just as well abolish the
courts altogether"
Gov. Osborn. whose views on tho ini-
tfative, referendum and recall are d.
rectly opposed to those OF Secretary
Nagel, preceded the Secretary IN making
his address. In an interview last even
ing, Gov. Osborn said:
TT is such speeches as that Of Secre-
tary Nagel which have kept President
Taft apologizing ever since he has been
In Office