South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-10-19

burden Of taxation from the shoulders
OF every consumer in the country.
great or small. 10 shoulders certainly
able 10 bear it.
we had time to learn from the
act administration OF the law that the
revenue resulting from the double
change would have been abundant
had il not been for. the breaking out
OF the present war in Europe. which
affects almost every route OF trade
and every market in the world out
side OF the United States. Until the
war ends and until its effects upon
manufacture and commerce have been
corrected we shall have 10 impose adj
ditiOnal taxes TO make up for the loss
fsuch part Of our import duties as
the war cuts off, by cutting off the
imports Themselves Veritable war
tax. though we are not at war; for
war and only war, is the cause Of 1t.
Reduction Came First.
at Is fortunate that the reduction
OF the duties came first The import
duties collected under the old tariff
constituted a much larger proportion
or the whole revenue Of the govern
ment than do the duties under the
new. y still larger proportion of the
revenue would have been cut off by
the war had the old taxes stood. and
essary as a consequence. No mis-
calculation, no lack Of foresight, has
created the necessity for the taxes,
but only a great catastrophe world
WIDEN its operation and effects.
With similar purpose and in like
temper the congress has sought, in
the trade commission bill and in the
Clayton bill, 70 make men in a small
way and to kill monopoly in the seed.
Before these bills were passed the
law was already clear enough that
mOnOpOlies once formed were illegal
and could be dissolved by direct pro-
cess of law and those who had Gre
ated them punished as for crime. But
there was no law TO check the pro-
cess by which monopoly was built up
until the tree was full grown and its
fruit fully developed, or, at any rate,
until the full opportunity for mOnop-
oily had been created.
with this new legislation there is
clear and sufficient law TO check and
destroy the nOXious grOwths in its in
fancy. MOnOpOlies are built up by
unfair methods of competition, and
the new trade commission has power
TO forbid and prevent unfair cOmpe-
titiOn, whether upon a big scale or
upon q little; whether just begun or
grown old and formidable. Monopoly
is created also by putting the same
ness enterprises. whether apparently
related or unrelated to one another,
by means of interlocking directOrates.
That the Clayton bill now in large
measure prevents. Each enterprise
must depend upon the intelligence
and business energy of the men VINO
officer it. And so all along the line:
Monopoly is to be cut off at the roots.
LabOrer Gets Justice.
Incidentally, Justice has been
done the labOrer. His labor IS no
longer to be treated as if it were
merely an inanimate object OF COM
merce disconnected from the for
tunes and happiness of a living human
being, TO be dealt with as an object OF
sale and barter. But that, great as IL
is. is hardly more than the natural
and inevitable cOrOllary of a law
whose object is individual freedom
and initiative as against any kind OF
private domination
THE accomplishment Of this legis-
lation seems to me a singularly sig
nificant thing. If our party were to
be called upon to name the particular
point of principle in which it differs
from its opponents most sharply and
in which il feels itself most definitely
sustained by experience, we should no
doubt say that il was this: That we
would have no dealings with mOnOp-
I
our opponents were ready to adopt 1t
into the realm of law, and seek mere
lv 10 regulate il and moderate II IN
/ its operation. 1t is our purpose to de-
strOy monopoly and maintain compe-
tition as the only effectual instrument
of business liberty.
I'VE have seen the nature and the
power of monopoly exhibited. We
know that it is more apt TO control
government than 10 be controlled by
it: for we have seen il control gov
eminent dictate legislation, and DOM
mate executives and courts. We feel
that our people are safe only in the
fields Of free individual endeavor
where American genius and initia-
tive are not guided by a few men as
in recent years. but made rich by
the activities Of a multitude, as in
lays now almost forgotten We will
not consent that an ungovernable
giant should be reared 20 full stature
in the very household OF the govern
ment itself
Democracy Of Credit.
"In like manner by the currency
bill we have created a democracy Of
credit such as has never existed in
this country before For a generation
or more we have known and admitted
that we had the worst banking and
cause the volume of our currency was
wholly inelastic; that is, because there
was more than enough at certain sea-
sons to meet the demands of COM
merce and credit. and at other times
far too little: that we could not les
sen the volume when we needed less
nor increase il when we needed more.
Everybody talked about the absurd
system and its quite unnecessary en-
barrassments. sure 10 produce peri
odic panics and everybody said that
il ought TO be changed and changed
very radically; but nobody took eff
fective steps TO change it until the
present congress addressed itself to
the task With genuine resolution and
an intelligence which expressed itself
in definite action. And now the thing
is done.
let bankers explain the technical
features OF the new system Suffice
il here TO say that il provides a cur
rency which expands as il is needed.
and contracts when IL is not needed /;
a currency which comes into exist
enCe in response to the call Of every