The Twin Falls times. [volume] (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1905-1916, 1913-12-30
Twin Falls to use it's tremendous
voting strength to hurt any part of
the Twin Falls country or county.
HOW SEC'Y. REDFIELDS WOULD
CURB THE TRUSTS.

the chief concern Of the present ses-
sion of congress will be ito prevent
private monopoly more effectually
than it has yet been prevented" and
that one step toward this goal will be
legislation to reduce the "debatable
ground" about the Sherman antitrust
law, lends peculiar interest to the pro-
gram of trust regulation outlined in
Secretary of Commerce Redfield's an
nual report. Many editors, in fact,
take it for granted that the secretary's
suggestions rather definitely fore
shadow the administration trust pol
icy, which is soon to be officially for
mulated in special presidential mes
sage to congress Thus the Brooklyn
Eagle Und. Dem.) points out that
while Mr.. Redfield is IAN ORR
ginal and independent thinker" he
is also "a man of good taste and of
personal loyalty" who would never
think of touching so delicate a subject
in a way to embarrass the future of
the administration, or to disturb need
lessly the commerce and industry of
the United States The New York
World (Dem.), however, fails to de-
tect the Wilsonian note in the COM
merce secretarys recommendation
and, until more fully advised" re-
iects the idea that they throw light on
the presidents legislative program
Mr.. Redfield's recipe for the further
regulation of big business" includes
several new laws and several thor
onghgoing Investigations by the bur-
eau of corporations. He would have
law declaring all restraints of trade to
be unreasonable, another guarding
against the watering of industrial Sc
curities, and yet another forbidding
interlocking directorates. At the same
time he would have an investigation to
determine whether or not trusts are
socially and economically efficient in
production, an inquiry into the ques-
ton of fixing retail prices, and an in
quiry into the cost of production of
clothing. OF the need of new legisla-
ton he says in part:
THAT there are immediate and we'll
known conditions that should and can
be remedied by law is apparent. Some
of these remedies are, for instance,
law providing that there shall be a
presumption that all restraints of
trade are unreasonable and placing
burden of establishing the reasonable
ness of such restraint upon the party
alleging it; legislation looking to fun
damental charter provisions for every
corporation doing interstate business;
that stocks and bonds shall not be is
sued except for money or property at
its true money value, preventing the
watering of stocks; that corporations
shall not hold stock in other compet-
ing companies, and that neither a per-
son nor a corporation shall at the
same time own a controlling interest
tons and that the officers of corpora
tons shall not be affiliated directly or
indirectly by holding office in other
corporations"
Congress will undoubtedly address
itself to some of these aspects of the
situation with curative provisions"
ba c,o+ VIII;
some of the correspondents in their
belief that his views coincide with
those of the president.
But regardless of such legislation
he goes on to say, there still remains
a fundamental economic fact to be de-
termined,' namely, whether the trust
or monopolistic form is socially and
economically efficient in production,
as is alleged" Upon the solution of
this problem, he says, must depend
the ultimate attitude of the govern
ment toward combinations and con-
solicitations in business" For the in
vestigation of this big question by the
bureau of corporations, Mr.. Redfield
advocates an appropriation of $431,-
700. Concerning the fixing of retail
prices, another subject recommended
for investigation, he says:
THE law with us is for the time
fixed by the decision of the supreme
court, that the fixing of retail prices
on the part of the manufacturers is
unlawful. If, however, new legislation
should in the future be required, it is
important that the truth be known lest
injustice be done, not so much to the
as to the consumer.
Some men, well informed, argue
that the fixing of retail prices under
where competition is manu-
facture exists and to promote compu-
tition. Others say that the refusal to
permit the fixing of retail prices tends