The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1912-08-03

|
ever may be the evil results of ia,
elimination of competition from tht
steel business, it does not justify
such remedy and could not b.
cured by it. Such a control semi
socialistic in its nature. is beyond
the power vested by the Constitution
in the Federal congress
: The abuses mentioned in this re.
: port can in. great measure be rem
edied by giving TO the operations oi
, the United States Steel Corporatior
and other like corporations tht
widest publicity and by the striet
enforcement of laws specifically in.
hihiting the employment OF cunning
devices by which an unfair advant
age over competitors is secured. The
Bureau OF Corporations possesses tbs
authority to thoroughly investigate
the internal affairs of industrial con
Germs doing an interstate business
Had the character OF the Steel Cor
poration and the nature and extent
OF its operations been known to the
people and TO the President of the
United States at hto time OF the alb
sorption of the Tennessee oCal and
Iron Co., it is high improbable that
the chief executive would in 20
minutes have given his consent to &
merger fraught with infinite injury
to the steel industry and to the pub
lie alike
The Commissioner of Corpora
tons should be required to report
to congress as well as to the presi-
dent of the United States at sucn
times and upon such conditions as
ii may prescribe, and the law Great
ing this bureau should be so amend
ed as to make such reports man
| datory upon the Commissioner Of
/ Corporations.
THE enormous earnings of the
/ Steel Corporation are due not to q
degree of Indignation OF efficiency
not possessed by its competitors, but
TO the ownership OF ore reserves out
of all proportion to its output o.
requirements and to the control and
! operation of common carriers. divis
ions of rates, and the liberal allow
ancc obtained from other concerns
through inequitabIe and inordinate
terminal allowances. The business
stfft trans f475tt TT iit,-f
should be absolutely separate and
distinct and no Industrial concern
shiuld be permitted to own or opeT-
ate an interstate carrier.
"The Attorney General of the
! United States and his subordinate
should not be permitted to exercise
an absolute discretion as to the in
stitution of proceedings under the
act of July /, 1909, known as the
Sherman Anti-truss act, or other
acts prohibiting combinations in re-
straint of trade The parties in
juriously affected by such combina-
tions should have access to the
courts and the benefit of adequate
and sufficient remedies for wrongs
inflicted by such combinations"
The legislation recommended by
the majority consists of three bills.
One of them, commonly known as
the Brandies bill Is designed to give
an injured party the right to insti-
tute suit to prevent the organization
of Ia combination in restraint of
trade. This bill also transfers the
burden of proof to the defendant
corporation to show that it is a com
bination within reasonable restraint
of trade" The bill recommended by
the committee has long been pend
ing before Congress having been in
troduced by Senator LaFollette and
Representative Lenroot.
Another bill would provide that
mo person who is engaged as an in
diyidual or as a member Of "A part
nership or as director or other Of
fcer, or an employee of a corpora
ton, in the business, in whole or In
part, OF manufacturing or sellin2
. railroad cars or locomotives, or raj,
road rails or structural steel. or min
ing and selling coal shall act q di.
= rector or other officer or empoyee
of any railroad company which con.
ducts an interstate commerce bust
ness.
The third bill Is intended to hit al
the sysnH If ic"tpckiEc ''YectC
= rates, and would separate intustria
from railroad business.
The part that United States Steel
the absorption OF the Tennessee Goa
and Iron Railroad Company. Presi
dent Roosevelt and Wall street finar
, ciers played in the panic of 1907 arr
covered in the report and the insin
uation Is made that the panic was AZ
artificial ono designed for the bene
~ Of the Steel Corporation
In its comment the ccmmitte'
says:
How panic which had persist
emily resisted the combined effort,
or the Federal government and Iohr
IN. Rockefeller and J p, MORGAN 6
Co, and remained in undated fury
: after Morgan and Rockefeller has
turned loose s60,000,0o0 and thu
Federal treasury $4,000 mor'
, should suddcnty be gtinpd Nv thl,