Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-10-05

landing IFS influence throughout the
world. and binding people together as
never before Compare the possibilities
of TO-DAY with the possibilities OF re"
centuries ago and who will measure the
difference? Whenever an invention or
importance is heralded some one excIalins
that il will deprive people of employ
uent and sometimes the labor-savlns
machine is condemned because 1t enables
a few TO do what II formerly required
MANY TO do in the same length OF time.
Rut the labor-saving machine is rather
rshor-multiplvinr machine When steam
DISPLACED the craft that moved by oars
- ala NOT decrease. but multiplied. the
number of those upon the sea When
the steam engine took the place Oh the
wagon it did not displace those VINO
drove the wagons; it increased the NUM-
her of persons engaged in transportation.
Twelve years ago a statement was maoe
and signed by the five men who stood at
the head OF five great railway orders ana
in that statement the world was told tnat
10000 men were engaged as employees In
the railway service. t.
EVERY new invention, 1 repeat, has en-
Iarged the demand for labor as II mas
multiplied the efficiency of labor. am
not prepared to say that We have yet rec
ognizcd the duty of society to bear some
OF the burdens that may fall temporarily
on people displaced by improvements that
bring a large gain to society. 1 am not
sure that we have yet recognized that
when society is the gamer society ought
to compensate those who individually SUI
fer for society's benefit But whether we
have found an accurate adjustment or
not. there is no doubt that society mas
largely gained
One of the great improvements, one of
the inventions that have made largely for
the development OF commerce, is the cor
porate entity. The corporation is step
in advance 1t enables people to do things
Jointly that they could not do alone. 1t
relieves those who cooperate Of the en-
barrassment of partnership and 1t sub
stitutes larger opportunities, and thus ia
cilitates the work OF exchange No one
who has estimated with intelligence the
usefulness of the corporation will for one
moment think of destroying the power
that the corporation gives for cooperative
effort
But every new step in advance brings
new RESPONSIBILITIES When the railroad
took the place Of the turnpike laws were
necessary that were not necessary on the
highway Society, recognizing that the
railroad had become a necessity, adjusted
itself TO the railroad. and then proceeded
by legislation 10 correct Whatever abuses
might arise in the management OF the
railroad And so society, accepting the
corporation as an established fact, is pro-
ceedfng to enact such laws as may De
necessary to make the corporation serve
the purpose for which il was created.
There are many differences between the
natural man and the corporate man.
There is a difference in the purpose OF
creation God made man and placed him
rpon His footstool to carry out a divine
decree; man created the corporation as a
rnouey-making machine. When God made
man He did not make the tailest man
much taller than the shortest, and He did
not make the strongest man much strong
or than the weakest; but when the law
creates the corporate person that person
may be a hundred. a Thousand. ten thou
sand. a million times stronger than the
God-uade man. Wien God made man He
SET a limit TO his exister ce. so that IL he
was a bad man he could not be bad long:
but when the corporation was created the
limit on age was raised, and II sometimes