Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-31
BACKSSHERMANLAW
Attorney General Regards It
as Adequate Statute.
TRUST PROBLEM SOLUTION
Enforcement of Existing Regula-
lions and Federal Incorporation.
ACTIVE SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT
President Taft Declared to Repre-
sent the Affirmative Pro-
gressive" idea.
TRUST PROBLEM SOLUTION
ACTIVE SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT

PHILADELPHIA, March 30-Attor-
ney General Wickersham tonight held
up the Sherman antitrust law as an
adequate statute to compel competition
in trade and pleaded that tie solution
of the trust problem lay in the en-
forcement of the Sherman law. backed
by affirmative legislation providing for
federal incorporation and regulation of
interstate and foreign business.
Speaking before the American Acad-
envy of Political and Social Science on
"A Constructive National Trust Policy"
the Attorney General declared that, in
his view, the elements of a sound pro-
gram to deal with the matter consist
mainly in:
"C) Enforcing the Sherman law against
all great combinations. by requiring them
to separate themselves into such parts
which will remove all danger Of monOpo-
ly; (2) in breaking up all agreements and
combinations between separate, inde-
pendent, competing concerns having Tor
their purpose the unfair control of busi-
ness and exclusion of competition, and,
where the intent to violate the law Is ap-
parent, prosecuting criminally those con-
cerned in them, and (3) in the enactment
of proper. adequate national law OF
corporate association. which will enable
under appropriate legal supervision, and
SO regulated in it's conduct as to make it
impossible to use the organization as
vehicle of fraud and deception either Of
investors or competitors. With such
police carried into effect the trust prob
lem,' in its present form at least, would
be effectively solved"
Schools Of Thought Busy.
Two schools of thought, the Attorney
General pointed out, are now busted with
the trust question. THE President, rep
resenting- the affirmative progressive
school," he continued, has recommend
ed the enactment of law by Congress
under which national corporations could
be organized to carry on commerce
among the states and with foreign coun-
tries. and subjected to appropriate federal
regulation. States which derive con-
siderable revenue from corporate organi-
cations object to this as involving the
loss OF that revenue. Many persons who
dread the Capitalization of power in the
national government object on that &C
count. They represent the negative state
rights school of thought" The Attorney
General believed the Presidents plan was
the only logical and effective way Of
dealing with the problem.
If Congress cannot be persuaded to
legislate on the subject other than mega
lively, Mr.. Wickersham favored bill re-
Gently introduced by Senator Williams Of
Mississippi. This he considered the most
practicable, the only clearly thought out
and intelligently conceived legislation in
this direction. 1t would prohibit all cor
porations from carrying on interstate
business unless organized under laws and
charters containing provisions and re-
strictions designed to prevent the evils
which. the Attorney General said, have
been SO characteristic of American cor
porate history"
Peculiar Conditions Noted.
1t would be easy to enforce the bill in
regard to future corporations. but the diff
ficulty, he said, arose over existing con-
Germs which had grown up under peculiar
conditions. To compel the latter to reor-
ganize in accordance with the provisions
of the bill within one or two years. he
feared, might result lin an unjustifable
destruction of bona fide property"
Discussing the disintegration Of the ITO
bacco trust into fourteen separate COM
panies. which has been severely criticised.
the Attorney General said the first fruits
of the dissolution 'have been apparent
in a competition for the purchase Of leaf
tobacco in Kentucky, where. instead of
one purchaser debating the price, eight
or ten separate and distinct purchasers
are competing with each other. and the
growers are having the benefit of this
competition.
Mr.. Wickersham said that undoubtedly
ness organizations of various kinds which
through agreements controlled the activi-
ties of their members and kept prices at
an artificial level.