The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-07-12
ROE A TRADE COMMISSION.


Careful consideration should be given
by congress to the bill which has been
presented by Senator Newlands of Ne
vada for the creation OF an interstate
trade commission which will have SINH
lar authority of control and regulation
over the corporations doing an inter-
state business as is now possessed b.
the interstate commerce commission
over the railroads. Some such legisla-
ton is needed if corporate abuses and
evils are to be met and solved in
manner that will be perfectly fair to
the corporations and their customers
the people.
In brief this bill provides that all
corporations doing an interstate bust
ness of a volume of $5.Oo0,OOO or more i
year shall register satisfactory state
ments as to capitalization, finances and
operation with the proposed commits
sion. Failure to make such registra.-
lions will be considered as indicating
that something is wrong with the neg
ligent companies. The commission may
at any time cancel the registration 90
an registered corporation for inn
proper financial organization, oppres-
sive or unfair methods of competition
acceptance of railroad rebates, refusa-
to allow access to records, of noncom-
pliance with any judicial decree rem
dered under the Sherman act 1t may
in extreme cases, for such Ofenses, de-
bar the offending corporations from en-
gaging in interstate commerce, and II
may require correction of over capital
ization. It's work, according to Nj
Newlands, is not to be complicated
with the administration of antitrust
law.
Too many people seem to be obsesseu
with the wrons idea that the Sherman
antitrust law is all sufficient Tor DEAL
ing with the huge corporations that
have developed into trusts or monop-
olies or something near them AS a mat
ter of fact. there is nothing to tn
law that gives the government any
kind of control or supervision over
these corporations except to put under
tho recent decisions of the supreme
court the bad trusts out of business.
Still the court holds that the properly
of offending corporations must be con-
served for the benefit of their stock
holders. SO the most that will PROB
ably. be accomplished by the recent de-
cisions of the court will be reorgah-
ization of the methods of doing bust
ness that have been found to be
against the law.
There is nothing in the Sherman law
that gives the government or the
courts any authority to control the
capitalization of these huge interstate
corporations. And in their excessive
Capitalization is to be found one o.
their chief evils. Most of the big cor
porations have a larger proportion Of
water in their stock than has even the
biggest offender in this particular in
the railroad world. To pay remunera-
tive dividends on this watered stock is
the reason why the trusts have found
it necessary to maintain the prices of
their wares at such high and unrea-
sonable levels An overly protective
| tariff has helped these corporations IN
their ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. But indications
are that this will be remedied before
many years have passed.
Economic observers are of the opin-
ion that had the big interstate indus
trial corporations been controlled and
regulated from the very beginning by
a federal commission, there wouldn't
have been any need for the antitrust
law But it is pretty difficult to pro-
vide against conditions until they fully
develop and the trust evil sprung up
like a mushroom. However, there
shouldn't be any more delay than
necessary until some kind of a govern
ment commission is created with ample
powers to handle this large problem. A
start should be made at once. 1t has
taken twenty years to build up the
interstate commerce law into an effee-
tive measure.