The daily sentinel., 1912-10-22

roosevelt, plus George W. Perkins.
Elbridge II. Gary and the rest OF the
steel trustharvester trust maguates.
Its open opposition to the third term
ticket was indicated In the issue of
Sept. Il. In the issue of Sept. u its
reasons for espousinE The Democratic
cause are clear and r1rceful.
The leading editorial, The Wastes
OF Competition" says:
More and more the campaign ia
Coming down to two pressing issues,
the tarih and the proper treatment OF
monopolies. Golfers actively dis.
agrees with tho view OF monopoly be-
Ing urged by Messrs, Roosevelt, Per
kins and Gary.
They talk great deal about the
wastes of competition. The necessary
wastes OF competition are relatively
Insignificant, and the wastes of unfair
and destructive competition are wholly
unnecessary. They Will be largely
eliminated when competition is regu-
lated
The La Toilette Lenroot and the
Stanley bills TO perfect the Sherman
law and the Nowlunds. Cummins pro
posals for an interstate trade commits.
sion are all directed in part to that
end. The remaining wastes of compe-
uhon may be likened to the wastes of
democracy. These are obvious. but we
know also that democracy has com
pensations which render it moro ell
cient than absolutiEm. So it is in in
dustry. The margin between what
men naturally do and what they can
do is so great that the system which
urges men on to effort is the best sys.
TEN.
The necessary wastes of monopoly.
on the other hand, are enormous. Some
OF these can. OF course, be eliminated
by regulation. An efficient interstate
trade commission, acting under appro-
pirate legislation. could put an end to
much of the oppression OF which trusts
have been guilty. It could prevent un-
Just discrimination. 1t could prevent
ruthless and unfair use Of power: but
government commission would he
powerless to secure for tho people the
low prices commonly attendant upon
competition.
AS no means exist for determining
whether greater net earnings are due
to greater efficacy in management or
to excessive profits, large net earnings
would be followed by compulsory re-
duction of prices, which in turn would
create a sense of injustice suffered.
paralyze individual enterprise and pTg.
duco unprOgrsssiVe, slip5h0d manage
ment. The attempt 10 secure i0iO
prices through price firing i0Ousd
proUe as imp0tcHt as the statutes
iohtch haze sought to protect the pu6,
lie in railroad rates 6y limiting the
dividends.
''Jhe interstate commerce commits
sion has been invoked as an argument
in favor Of licensing monopoly That
commission has stopped many abuses;
it has practically put an end to cor
rupt and Corrupuug discrimination in
rates; it has protected the shipper
from oppression and arrogance and in.
Justice; it has prevented unreasonable
ddUaHCcs iu rates; but IL has secured
comparatively few notable reductions
in rates, except those involved In
stopping discrimination between per
sons places or articles. II has been
pCIcgrlgSS to TrfHcs operating costs,
and greater reductions in rates can
come only lgiiF reductions in the cost
Of producing tran3portl ton. The in
justice and corruption attending the
earlier railroad period were extremely
serious. But we must not forget that
the slpeepiHg reductions IN Anteytcru
operating costs and rates belong 10 the
earlier period Of competition among
railroads. In the ten years from 1889
to 1893, yhile competition among the
railroads was active, the freight rate
per ton per mile was gradually re
duced from .9i1 to .72f. The years
1S99-l90O marked The great movement
for combination or Community OF in.
terest' in the railroad world as well
as in the Industrial world. The freight
rate per ton per mile began 10 rise. In
each of the eleven succeeding years II
was higher than in 1899, and iu 1910
It was 1853.
"The deadeuInE effect of monopoly
is illustrated by It's arrest Of inveu.
ton. The shoe machinery trust form.
ed in 1893, resulted in combining, di.
rectly and indirectly. moro than 100
shoe machinery concerns. It acquired
substantially a monopoly Of all the es
seutial machinery used in bottomipg
boots and shoes. as we'll as many 9th
er machines. It believed itself unss.
sailable, aud shoe manufacturers had
come to regard their subsection to the
trust as unavoidable. Nevertheless. in
1910 the trust found its prestige sud
denly threatened and its huge profits
imperiled. 1t wss confronted With
oompstitor 80 tormidable that the
triIst in haErant vinlatinn Of Ian. ,,nid