Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-12-07

Of the world which requires us, II W
would maintain our navy as an insur'
ance OF peace. to augment our naval
force by Mt least two battleships year
and by battle cruisers, gunboats, tor.
pedo destroyers and submarine boats
in proper proportion. We have no
desire for war. We would 60 as far a.
any nation in the >world to avoid war,
but we are world power.
| Department Of Justios.
This department has been very &C.
i've In the enforcement Of the law. 1t
has been better organized and with 2
larger force than ever before in thu
history Of the government. The prose-
cutions which have been successfully
concluded and which are now pending
testify to the effectiveness Of the de-
partmental work.
Sherman antitrust law has gone on
without restraint or diminution, and
DEGREES similar to those entered in the
Standard OIL and the tobacco cases
have been entered in other suits, like
the suits against the powder trust and
the bathtub trust. am very strongly
convinced that a steady. consistent
course in this regard, with continu-
ing of supreme court decisions upon
| new phases Of the trust question not
already finally decided, Is going to Of
| fer a solution of this much discussed
| and troublesome issue in quiet, calm
and judicial way without any radical
legislation changing the governmental
policy in regard to combinations now
denounced by the Sherman antitrust
law.
I have already recommended as an
aid in this matter legislation which
would declare unlawful certain well
known phases Of unfair competition
in interstate trade, and I have also
advocated voluntary national incor-
poration for the larger industrial en-
terprises, with provision for closer
supervision by the bureau Of corpora
tons or a board appointed for the pur-
pose, so as to make more certain COM
pliance with the antitrust law on the
one uduQ duu " give 6Aoe'tOA SSNUAA>S
to the stockholders against possible
prosecutions on the other. f..
l believe, however, that the orderly
course Of litigation in the courts and
the regular prosecution of trusts charg-
ed with the violation Of the antitrust
law is producing among business meh
a clearer and clearer perception OF the
line of distinction between business
that is to be encouraged and business
that is to be condemned, and that In
this quiet way the question OF trusts
can be settled and competition retain
ed as an economic force to secure res
sonableness in prices and freedom and
independence in trade.
Reform Of Court Procedure.
I am glad to bring to the attention
Of congress the fact that the supreme
court has radically altered the equity
rules governing the procedure on the
equity side of all federal courts, and
though, as these changes have not been
yet put in practice so as to enable us
to state from actual results what the
reform will accomplish. they are Of
such character that we can reason
ably prophesy that they will greatly
reduce the time and cost of litigation
in such courts. The court has adopted
many of the shorter methods of the
present English procedure. and. while
it may take little while for the pro-
fession to accustom itself to these
&c. toi, 10 To Ii.
tate litigation. The action Of the ST.
preme court has been so drastic and so
full of appreciation of the necessity for
great reform in court procedure that
l have no hesitation in following up
this action with Recommendation
which l foreshadowed in my message
of three years ago, that the sections OF
the statute governing the procedure in
the federal courts Oh the common law
side should be 80 amended as to give
to the supreme court the same right to
,, make rules Of procedure in common
law as they have since the beginning
of the court exercised in equity. -.
do not doubt that full considera-
ton Of the subject will enable the
court while giving enect to the sub
stantial differences in right and RENE
| dy between the system Of common
law and the system Of equity SO to
unite the two procedures into the form
Of one civil action and to shorten the
procedure in such civil action as to
furnish a model to all the state courts
exercising concurrent jurisdiction with
the federal courts Of first instance.
Under the statute now In force the
common law procedure in each federal
court Is made to conform to the pro-
cedure in the state in which the court
is held. In these days, when we
should be making progress In court
procedure. such a conformity statute
| makes the federal method too depend
emit upon the action Of state legisla-
lures. can but think it a great op-
portunity for congress to intrust to
the highest tribunal in this country,
evidently imbued with a strong spirit
in favor of reform Of procedure. the
power to frame a model code OF pro-