The Daily Missoulian., 1912-08-07

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naItimore convention assert their AZ.
votion, and which. In the next nlacc
nuilliies and makes an empty preten g
OF their first statement, The nro.
posals OF the platform are 40 conf fIct /.
!ns ana 30 absurd that II II hard r.
imagine how any attempt could be
sl maue IN good faith to carry them out
Dut, II such attempt were sincerely
made. u could only produce industrial
cnaos. Were such an attempt made,
have something to fear. ana vat M
great adroit criminal able 10 com :
mahd the advice OF the best corpora :
ton lawyers would have much to fear
what is needed Is action directly tho
reverse OF that thus confusediy indi !.
GATED. We progressives stand for the
rights of the people. When these
rights can best be secured bv ;nsist !.
ence upon states rights, then ,wa "a
Tor states rights; when taev can hest
be secured BY insistenc & upon nationsi
rights. then we are fyf national rirhts.
interstate commerce can be effectively
eon.roiIed only by the nation. The
s.a.es sss.l cannot control II under the con .
..u'Vn, s., aLo TO amend the constitu-
.aon py giving them control Of IL
would r.mount to a dissolution ~ the
soverrxnent. The worst OF the big
trusts have always endeavored 10 keen
awe the feeling In favor Of having
t.Se states themselves, and not the ma
fion, attempt to do this work. because
they know that In the long run such
effort would be ineffective. There is
no surer way to prevent all success :
iui effort TO deal with the trusts than
20 insist that they be dealt with by
tne states rather than by the nation,
n
states and the nation on the subject,
The weil-meanink ignorant man who
aovances suck a proposition does as
anuch DANA 4es as II ne were hired by
the trusts themselves, for he IL play
ing the game OF every big crooked
corporation In the country. The only
effective way In which to regulate
me trusts Ii through the exercise of
the collective power of our people as a
whole through the governmental agen-
cies established by the constitution
Tor this very purpose. Grave Injustice
III done by the congress when Il falls
to give the national government COM
plete power In this matter; and still
graver injustice by the federal courts
when they endeavor In any way to
pare down the right of the people COL
tectively to act In this matter as they
deem wise: such conduct does itself
tend to cause the creation OF a twilight
zone In which neither the nation nor
the states have power Fortunately,
the federal courts have more and
more of recent years tended TO adopt
the true doctrine. which Is that all
these matters are to be settled by the
peoples themse Yes. and that the con-
science of the people. and not the
preference of any servants OF the peo-
pie. is to be the standard Is deciding
what action shall be taken by the peo-
pie. AZ Lincoln phrased 1t: "Thc
tquestion) OF national power and state
rights as principle Is not other than
the principle Of generality and To-
caiity. Whatever concerns the whole
should be confided to tho who!e-to
the general government; Nhi'c what
left exclusively to the state
1t Is utterly hopeless to attempt 20
control the trusts merely by the anti
trust law. or by any law the same in
principle. no matter what the modI-
ncations may be In detail. In the
first place. these great corporations
cannot possibly by controlled merely
by succession of lawsuits. The ad-
ministrative branch Of the government
must exercise such control. The pre-
posterous failure of the commerce
court has shown that only damage
comes from the effort to substitute
judicial administrative control OF
great corporations. In the next place,
a loosely drawn law which promises to
do everything would reduce business
to complete ruin IL 1t were not also 80
drawn as to accomplish almost moth
ing.
AS construed by the democratic
platform. the antitrust law would, II
II could be enforced. abolish all busi-
ness OF any size or any efficiency The
promise thus to apply and construe
the law would undoubtedly be broken,
but the mere fitful effort thus to APP
ply 1t would do no good whatever,
would accomplish widespread harm.
and would bring all trust legislation
into contempt. Contrast what has ac-
tually been accomplished under the
interstate commerce law with what has
actually been accomplished under the
antitrust law. The first has, on the
whole achieved real and even great |
results (a'though firmly believe that
II the power OF the commissioners
grows greater. II will be necessary to |
mako them and their superior. the |
president. even more completely re-
sponsible to the people for their acts).
The second has occasionally done
good, has usually accomplished moth
Ing. has generally left the worst con-
ditions wholly unchanged. and has
been responsible for a considerable
amount of downright and positive evil.
What is needed Ii the application to
all Industrial concerns and all co-op-
Grating interests engaged In interstate
commerce In which there Is either
or control of the market of
the principles on which we have gone
In regulating transportation concerns
engaged In such commerce. The anti
trust law should be kept on the stat
ute books and strengthened so as to
make 1t genuinely and thoroughly ef-
fective against every big concern tend
Ing to monopoly or guilty OF anti-so-
ciai practices. AT the same time a
national industrial commission should
be created which should have COM
plete power TO regulate and control all
the great industrial concerns engaged
In interstate business--which prac-
tically means all OF them In this coun-
try. This, commission should exercise
over these industrial concerns like
powers to those exercised over the
by the interstate commerce
and over the national
banks by the comptroller of the cur
rency and additional powers II found
necessary. The establishment OF such