The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1912-10-31
7. R. DISCUSSES
LIVING PROBLEM
Declares High Cost Of NeCes-
stiles Is Grave Question.
WHERE OPPONENTS ARE WEAK

tionaI PerpIexity-Trusts Not En-
tirely to Blame For All of Coun-
try's Ills-Democrats Reverse Areu-
ment Advanced Sixteen Years Ago.
The high cost of living is discussed
by Theodore Roosevelt in the current
issue of the Outlook. His article is
one of series of editorials repeat
ing in essence the statement of his
political faith made at the Progress
sive national convention in Chicago
There can be no more important
question" he says, than the high
cost of living necessities. Grave
though the problem is, there is one
way to make it graver, and that is to
deal with it insincerely, to advance
false remedies, to promise the impos-
sible, Our opponents, Republicans
and Democrats alike, propose TO deal
with it in this way"
"In order to show the utter futility
of the belief that the abolition of the
tariff and the establishment of free
trade would remedy~the condition
necessary is to look at the course Of
industrial events in England and Ger
many during the last thirty years, the
former under free trade, the latter
under a protective system.
During these thirty years it is
matter of common knowledge that
! Germany has forged ahead relatively
to England. and this not only as re-
CARDS the employers but as regards
the wage earners-in short, as re-
| CARDS all members of the Industrial
| classes.
| 1T is also asserted that the trusts
are responsible for the high cost of
living. l have no question that as re-
CARDS certain trusts this is true.
also have no question that 1t will con-
tinue to be true just as long as the
country confines itself to acting as
the Baltimore platform demands that
we act.
"This demand is, in effect, for the
states and national government to
make the futile attempt to exercise
forty-nine sovereign and conflicting
authorities in the effort Jointly to sup
press the trusts, while at the same
time the national government, refuses
to exercise proper control over them.
"There will be no diminuition in the
cost of trust made articles so long as
our government attempts the impos-
sible task of restoring the flintlock
conditions of business sixty years ago
by trusting only to succession of law
suits under the antitrust lava meth
cd which it has been definitely showp
usually results to the benefit of any
big business concern which really
ought to be dissolved, but which
causes disturbances and distress to
multitudes of smaller concerns.
1T is the trusts which limit produc-
tion, or which, without limiting pro-
duction, take advantage of the lack OF
government control and eliminate
competition by combining to control
the market, that cause an increase in
the cost of living.
There should be established at
once under the national government
an interstate industrial commission
which should exercise full supervision
over the big industrial concerns doing
an Interstate business into which an
element OF monopoly centers. Whers
these concerns deal with the neces.
saries Of life the commission should
not shrink, If the necessity is proved.
of going to the extent of exercising
regularatory control over the condi.
tions that create or determine monop
oily prices.
"By such action we shall-certainly
be able to remove the element of con.
tributory causation on the part of the
trusts and the tariff toward the high
cost of living.
THE modern tendency to leave the
country for the town is another, ele.
ment, and exhaustion of the soil and
poor methods of raising and market
ing the products of the soil make up
another element. Another element
is that of waste and extravaganza, in.
d'vidual and national. No laws which
the wit OF man can devise will avail
to make the community prosperous il
the average individual lives in such
fashion that his expenditure always
j exceeds his income,
National extravaganza that is
the expenditure of money which is
not warranted-we can ourselves con.
troll; and to some degree we can help
in doing away with the extravaganza
caused by international riyalries.
+ These are ell definite methods by
which something can be accomplished
In the direction of increasing the cost
Of living. All taken together will not
fully meet the situation.
There are in it elements which as
yet we do not understand. We, can
be certain that the1remedy proposed
by the Democratic party is quack
remedy. 1t is just as emphaticaIiy a
quack remedy as was the univ> 100.
oure-all which they proposed "
years ago.
In