Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1912-08-06
ROOSEVELT Pro,,1ll1gates
Confession Of Fn;th"
Sets Forth Principles Of National Progress;ves-says
Old Parties Are Merely H,sks'-Argues for
Right of People Rule-Tr;ff and
High Cost Of Living

the courts, but to emancipate them
from q position whenever they stand
finally In the way Of social Justice.
I am well aware that every
upholder Of privilege, every hired
agent or beneficiary of the special In
terests, including many well meaning
parlor reformers, will denounce all this
as socialism or 'anarchy'-the same
terms they used in the past in denounc-
Ing the movements to control the rail-
ways and to control public Utilities.
AS a matter of fact, the propositions l
make constitute neither anarchy nor
socialism. but, on the contrary, cor
receive for socialism and an antidote
to anarchy"
| Construetivo Control Of the Trusts.
In addition to punishment for wrong
doing by the trusts, the imperative de-
mand is effective and complete regu'
| lation. The views of President Van
Hise of the University Of Wisconsin in
his scientific work on trust regulation
are in harmony with the program Of
the National Progressives. "The pres
| ent conditions Of business cannot be
accepted as satisfactory" The reason
for this Is explained, in Mr.. Roosevelt's
opinion, by the fact that ''those dealing
with the subject have attempted to d.
vide into two camps. each as unwise
as the other" One camp has fixed its
attention only on the need for pros
perity-''prosperity to the big man on
top trusting to their mercy to let some
thing leak through to the mass of their
countrymen below, which, In effect,
means that there should be no attempt
to regulate the ferocious scramble in
which greed and cunning reap the
largest rewards The other camp has
SO fixed its attention upon the injus-
tees OF the distribution OF prosperity,
"omitting all consideration OF having
something to distribute, and advocates
action which, 1t is true. would abolish
most Of the inequalities of the distri-
button of prosperity. by only the un-
| fortunately simple process of abolish
, Ing the prosperity itself" The ten
dency of those now in control of the
Republican party is to give special
! privileges to "big business" and to cor
rect the evil Of such a course when
they become crying by sporadic law
suits under the antitrust law. The
tendency Of the Democrats, Judged
both by their record in congress and
by the Democratic platform. is to abol-
ish all business Of any size or eff
| cheney, on the ground that oil bigness
J is badness and littleness and weakness
sign Of virtue. What Is needed Is
action directly the reverse Of that thus
confusedly indicated"
| There should be applied to all indus
trial concerns engaged in interstate
| commerce in which there Is either
monopoly or control of the market the
principles already adopted lin regulat-
ing transportation concerns engaged IN
such commerce. The antitrust law
should be kept on the statute book to
| be invoked against every big concern
tending to monopoly or guilty of anti
social practices. At the same time q
| national industrial commission should
be created which should have complete
power to regulate and control all the
great Industrial concerns engaged In In
terstate business which practically
means all of them In this country.
This commission should exercise over
these Industrial concerns like powers
to those exercised over the railways by
the interstate commerce commission
and over the national banks by the
comptroller Of the currency and add
tional powers If found necessary" The
| Itch I'm
to the books of each corporation and
power to find out exactly how 1t treats
it's employees, its rivals and the gen
eral public. Any corporation
voluntarily coming under the commits
sion should not be prosecuted under the
antitrust law as long as 1t obeys In
good faith the orders Of the commits
sion. The commission would be able to
interpret in advance to any honest man
asking the Interpretation what he may
do and what he may not do in carrying
On a legitimate business" When cor.
porations not submitting themselves to
the regulations of the commission OF
clearly evading or violating its orders
are prosecuted under the antitrust law
and convicted, the commission should
have the duty Of seeing that the de-
cree Of the court is put into effect com
pletely." Only in this way can there
be avoided such gross scandals as
those attendant upon the. present nd.
ministra tion's prosecution Of the Stand
ard on and the tobacco trusts" a pros
ecution which has merely resulted In
increased prices to the public, injury to
the small competitor and actual finan.
e1al benefit to the trusts themselves.
1.-THE Progressive proposal is definite
It 10 practicable. We promise nothing
that We cannot carry out, we promise
nothing which viii jeopardize honest
business. Our proposal Is to
help honest business activity, however
extensive, and to see that it Is reward
Cd With fair retnrn, 80 that there may
be no oppression either Of business
men or the common people We pro.
pose to make 1t worth while for our
business men to develop II. most EN-.
cient business agencies for use In inter
national trade, for It Is to the interest
Of our whole people that we should do
well in International business. But we
propose to make those business agen.
cies do complete Justice to our own PEG
tple. Where these concerns deal with
the necessaries Of life the commission
should not shrink. II the necessity Il