The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-08-08

It's turn grew suspicious and wondered
how those committees were being
guided and controlled, by what in
fluences and plans of personal advan-
tage. Government cannot be whole
somely conducted IN such an atmos
phere. Its very honesty Is in jeopardy.
F'avors are never conceived in the gen
eral interest: they are always for the
benefit of the few and the few who
seek and obtain them have only them
selves to blame If presently they seem
to be condemned and distrusted.
What Has Been Result?
For what has the result been? Pros
perity? Yes, If by prosperity you mean
vast wealth no matter how distributed,
or whether distributed at all, or not;
if you mean vast enterprises built up
to be presently concentrated under the
control of comparatively small bodies
of men, who can determine almost at
pleasure whether there shall be COM
petition or not. The nation as ma
ton has grown immensely rich. She is
Justly proud of her industries and of
the genius of her men of affairs. They
can master anything they set their
minds TO, and we have been greatly
stimulated under their leadership and
command Their laurels are many and
very green. We must accord them the
great honors that are their due and
we must preserve what they have built
up for us. But what of the other side
of the picture? 1t is not as easy for
us to live as 1t used to be. Our money
viii not buy as much. High wages,
even when we can get them, yield us
no great comfort. We used to be bet
ter off with less, because dollar could
buy so much more. The majority of us
have been disturbed to find ourselves
growing poorer even though our earn
ings were slowly increasing. Prices
climb faster than we can push our
| earnings up.
''Moreover, we begin to perceive some
things about the movement OF prices
| that concern us very deeply, and fix our
| attention upon the tariff schedules with
a more definite determination than ever
| to get to the bottom of this matter. We
have been looking inc 1t, at trials held
under the sherman act and In inves-
LEGATIONS in the committee rooms or
Congress. where men who wanted TO
know th\ real facts have been busy
with inqiJry; and we begin to see very
clearly what at least some of the
methods are by which prices are fixed.
We know that they are not fixed by
the competitions of the market or by
the ancient law of supply and demand
which is to be found stated In all the
primers of economics, but by private
arrangements with regard to what the
supply should be, and agreements
among the producers themselves. Those
who buy are not even represented by
counsel. The high cost of living is
arranged by private understanding.
I'VE naturally ask ourselves, how did
these gentlemen get control or these
things? Who handed our economic laws
over to them for Legislative ana con-
| tractual alteration? We have In THESE
trfa pr
| tariff. still another proof that, not the
people of the United States but only
| very small number of them have been
| partners in that legislation. Those rev
/ have learned how to control tariff leg
| islation and as they have perfected
! their control they have consolidated
| their interests. Men of the same IN
terest have drawn together, have unit
ed their enterprises and have formed
| trusts. and trusts can control prices
| TJp to n certain point land only up TO
certain point great combinations ct
1 feet great economies in administra-
ton. and increase efficiency BY simpli-
flying and perfecting organization but
whether they effect economies or not
! they can very easily determine prices
by intimate agreement, so soon as they
come to control a sufficient percentage
1 of the product in any great line Of bus
mess; and we now know that they do.
Not Indicting Anyone
81 am not drawing up an indictment
| against anybody. This Is the natural ms
-ory of such tariffs as arc row cortrived,
as 1t is the natural history of all other
governmental favors and of All license
10 use the government to help certain
| groups of indis iduals along in life. NO
! body IN particular, suppose, Is to blame,
| and am not interested Just now IN
blaming anybody: am simply trying to
| t,oint out what the situation Is. III order
| % suggest what there is Cor us to do II
| we would serve the country as whole.
The fact is, that the trusts have been
fe rrned. have gained all but complete con-
| troll Of the larger enta,pri:es of the coun-
Try, have fixed prices and fixed them high
sc that profits might be rolled up that
| were thoroughly worth willie. and that
the tariff, with its artificial projections
and stimulatoils. gave them the oppor'
/ tunity to do teese things. and has safe
/ guarded them IN that opportunity.
4 The trusts DO not helons; to the period
II infant industries. they are not this
4 products of til. time thai old laborious
time when the sreats continent we liys