Evening journal., 1914-07-08

price levels and influence progress
in commercial OF industrial methods.
External forces guide the broad deve-
lopment from barter to an unknown
future that constantly roshapes busi-
ness. Still business men must pro-
duce and market goods IN accord with
this development. Civic, social. and
public questions establish external
probloms as important to the busi-
ness man-if not so directly apparent
as the technical internal problems
arising within his own business
The average business man gives
most Of his time to internal problems
better operating methods. better
equipment, better stock, better pro-
ccsses-and uses what Is left for
general external questions Re-
H0uroeful and able in dealing with
Internal problems, he is neither
aoutely interested In external deye-
lopments nor prepared to meet them
to his best advantage. Possibly the
unusual compleXity of his internal
problems allows him little time for
broader issues The farmers and the
/ laborerH have an opportunity TO give
more attention to their external
problems Consequently they are
hotter prepared to handle them than
the business men Their organiza-
tons, national aIs1 even inter-na-
tional, are active, aggressive and
thorough. When legislation affecting
them reaches Washington. an alert
representative Of their united opinion
is on hand.
Take the antitrust legislation
which has already passed the House
Of Representatives and is now in the
Senate II involves an external
problem important to the business
man. But the average business man
| as a general rule is not interested
in legislation, except that he notices
the government is tinkering with
business. Since the tinkers have not
been trained in active business, he
believes something may happen to
business. His lack of faith brings
about a psychological reaction-a
state of mind which tends to de-
press business.
a partial explanation OF the busi-
ness mans mere casual attention TO
this type of external problem is
probably the fact that he has taken
it for granted big" business will
lcok after his interests at Washing
ton He looks upon big" business
as nothing more than ordinary busi-
ress grown big and feels that il it
protects itself, he too will be pro-
tected.
big" business is, however, no
longer q dependable leader. Some
concerns that happen 10 be big have
failed to meet public opinion in carry
ing out their own affairs and are
without favor al Washington Size
las nothing TO do with the honesty
OF business as long as ITS methods
are fair But some big businesses
have undoubtedly oYer-reached. The
entirely innocent phrase "big busi-
ness has changed to big" business,
which as matter Of fact means "un-
fair business" This is as unjust as
calling both wolves and dogs
wolves on the ground that wolves
are Wild dogs with bad habits.
Reaction against unfair business,
/ desire to punish, followed disclosures
Of its practices. The old half-civi-
lized revenge notion-an eye for an
cyc and q tooth for tooth-gOt the
upper hand. Because of the desire
tu bring unfair business TO time, the
Legislation prepared in ths spirit of
retribution is apt to 90 beyond the
limit of practicability and overlooks
the interests of non-combatants
These non-combatants are the
average business men who after all
do the big business Of tho country
They have not been diffefentiating
between big business on the whole
and the few large concerns at odds
With the law Consequently they did
not do much more than read what
the newspapers had to say about the
Sherman antitrust act. They saw
nothing Objectionable in it and when
the courts had defined its apnlica-
ton, considered it satisfactory
check on unfair practices Being
busy making and selling, not with
eFading or with breaking the Sher-
man act they confined themselves
i to the internal problems of their in
diyidual businesses.
But much of the legislation now
proposed as supplementary to the
| Sherman act will affect non-com-
batants. The average business man
4 will be- policed by the methods for
I regulating unfair business.
, Many of these methods do not give
proper consideration to mis- everyday
work One. section Of the Newlands'
4 bill decidedly suggests government
/ By suspicion. II assumes all bust
\ ness guilty until shown 10 be inno-
cent Its proposal for broadcast an
/ nual reports burdens the innocent
4 with the cost Of searching out the
/ guilty
/ If Congress were to pass law
! forcing every citizen TO go to court
\ once a year on a sort of day Of judg-
ment, explain his work against the
\ criminal code and finally justify him
/ self or stay in cell, there would
probably be a revolution. !, Most GER
/ tainly the courts would ~ so occu-
pied investigating the innocent that
/ the guilty might escape. Still the
proposed antitrust legislation pro-
/ vides that business men so through a
procedure similar in principle. From
1 every corporation of whatever size
engaged in interstate commerce. a de-
tailed annual report of its acts and
4 practices is provided for.
An unfair business with full
treasury does not view with alarm
The cost OF preparing reports for the
government, but the average business
man must figure to dollars and cents
I the work involved.
The majority OF the one hundred
/ thousand corporations which might
be affected are the bread and butter
/ OF business men. II will average to
cost each at least 0.00-S20. .000,-
4 10000 out of the net profits of the
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