The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1912-02-29
that tells for fits betterment, a man
whom his neighbors look up to and re-

that tells for fits betterment, a man
whom his neighbors look up to and re-
Epect. He is in no sense dangerous to
his community just because he is an in
tegral part of his community. bone % is
bone and flesh Of is &c i. His life f1c-s
are intert}T.Gol with He lie Gbers of
his fellow Clt ais. Yet no.-a Us many
me- Of IT, '--I .an they come 10
make Ecce sry 1-5 e agreements with
one another ind themselves III danger
Of becoming inviting trausgrcssors
OF the law ana are at loss to know
what the law forbids and what it per-
mits. This is all wrong. There should
be fixed governmental policy, policy
which shall clearly define and punish
wrongdoing and shall give in advance
full information to any man as to just
what he can and just what he cannot
legally and properly do. 1t is absurd
and wicked to treat the deliberate law
breaker as On an exact par with the
man eager to obey the law, whose only
desire is to find out from some compe-
tent governmental authority what the
law is and then live UP 10 it. 1t is alb
surd to enGaavor to regulate business
in the interest Of the public by means
Of long Drawn lawsuits without any
acconnanircaot Of administers I've con
troll and regulation and without any
attempt To C.e-r,E-.nate between the
hone man -ho Las succeeded in bUsi-
ness bec3U-a Of rendering service to
the public and the dishonest man who
has succeeded in business by cheating
the public.
So much fcr the small business man
and the middle sized business man.
Now for big business. It is imperative
to exercise over big business a control
and supervision which are unnecessary
as regards small business. All bust
ness must be conducted under the law.
and ali business men, big or little, must
act justly. But wicked big interest
IS necessarily more dangerous to the
community than a wicked little inter
est big business" in the past has
been responsible for much Of the spe-
cial privilege which must be unspar-
inSly cut ont of our national life. /
do E0t believe il making mere size OF
ana by itself criminal. The mere fact
of size, however, does unquestionaDly
carry the potentially Of such grave
vrongdomg that there should be BY
law provision made for the strict super
vision and regulation CT these great i'll
duStrial concerns doing an interstate
business, much as we Row regulate the
transportation agencies which are en-
aged in interstate business. The anti
trust law does good in so far as it can
be invoked against combinations which
really are nonopolies or which restrict
production CT which artificially raise
prices. But in so far as it's workings
are uncertain or as it threatens cOrpOr
atoms which have not been guilty Of
anti-sOcial conduct it does harm. More
over, it cannot by itself accomplish
more than trifling part of the gov
ernmental regulation of big business
which is needed. The nation and the
states must cooperate in this matter.
Among the states that have entered
this field Wisconsin has taken a lead
ing place. Following Senator La Fol-
lette, a number Of practical workers
and thinkers in Wisconsin have turned
that state into an experimental labOra-
tory of wise governmental action in aid
of social and industrial justice. They
have initiated the kind of progressive
government which means not merely
the preservation Of true democracy, but
the extension of the principle of true
democracy into industrialism as we'll
as into politics. One prime reason why
the state has been so successful in this
policy lies In the fact that it has done
justice to corporations precisely as it
has exacted justice from them.
This is precisely the attitude we
should take toward big business. 1t
Is the practical application Of the prin-
ciple Of the square deal. Not only as
4 matter Of Justice. but In our own
Interest, we should scrupulously re-
Dpect the rights Of henest and decent
business and should encourage it
where its activities make, as they often
DO make, for the common good. In
other words, our demand Is that big
business give the people a square deal
and that the people give square deal
10 any man engaged In big business
who honestly endeavors to do what is
right and proper.
On the other hand, any corporation.
big or little, which has gained its pO-
sition by unfair methods and by inter-
ference with the rights Of others.
which has raised prices or limited out
put in improper fashion and has been
guilty Of demoralizing and corrupt
practices, should not only be broken
up, but 1t should be made the business
IF some competent governmental body
BY constant supervision to see that it
does not come together again, save IN
Ter such strict control as to insure the
against all danger Of rep
etition Of the bad conduct.
Control Should Be Administrative.
All business into which the element
IF monopoly in any way or degree en-
ters and where it proves in practice
impossible totally to eliminate this ele-
nent of monopoly should be carefully
regulated and controlled by
governmental authority, and such con
,rol should be exercised by administra-