New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1915-04-29
GREATEST ASSET OF
OUR POLITICIANS"
Tariff and Sherman Antitrust Law,
Says Perkins.

Muskogee, Okla, April 2e.-"The
tariff and the Sherman antitrust law
are the greatest asset of our politi-
clans and the greatest liability OF
our merchants" declared George w.
Perkins OF New York, before the
Southern Commercial Congress to-
day. He spoke on The New South
and the New World" and discussed
what he called another great recon-
struction period, when the New South
is no longer that of Henry Grady's
day, but of Thomas Edison's day, with
its problems no longer sectional but
national and international.
Mr.. Perkins declared that laws are
such now that no man can find out
what he can legally do in business.
Laws arc Vague.
No lawyer. court or president can
tell him The said, and while his
transactions may clearly be proper,
morally and financially. the laws are
so vague that that one government
official can take one position and an
other government official exactly the
opposite position and the courts can
do and are doing precisely the same
thing New enterprises, new under
tskings, that mean so much to any
country. and general business cannot
and will not be started until this un-
certainty is removed. We are told
the Clayton law will facilitate bus
mess. IL might better be called the
Middle Law, for the only business
It will facilitate is the business for
lawyers"
Hits Sherman law Drafters.
The drafters of the Sherman law"
he said failed to diagnose the sit
uation correctly. They saw new evils
creeping into the business world and
instead of striking at those evils they
tried by man-made laws to wipe out
God-given economies The law
should have supplemented the COM
mon law so as to make IL criminal
to issue watered stock, or to issue
false annual staten ents; should have
required federal incorporation with
the fullest publicity and strict gov
eminent regulation in the case of
large interests and international in
dustrial companies where ownership
is widespread"
All the bills proposing tariff boards
and tariff commissions, Mr.. Perkins
said, fail to provide for sufficient
latitude and power. He said such
a body should be non-psrtisan. with
ample authority and facilities to deal
with the subject I'm a big way" He
said IL should be n sort OF tariff court
to which people of any industry may
at any time apply and which may
take steps TO have congress act
promptly where injustice has been
found and relief shown necessary.
Congress. he said, should delegate to
it. general supervision OF preparation
of tariff schedule and be guided by
its expert advice.
HuIabaIoo for 20 Years.
"Crowding the tariff hard for first
he added. has been the hula baloo
kept up all over our land for 90 years
over the Sherman law. What has
come of it all? Many political jobs,
business failures, innumerable lost
business opportunities. For years
business in this country has been the
football of politics and politicians.
All of you are responsible because
you let politics go hang"
Saying he held no brief for the |
Standard Oil company, he suggested |
that while it may have done any |
of things wrongful, it had |
been a phenomenal commercial sue
cess and the government might have |
tried the experiment of regulating
and controlling il. He said mo |
question ever has been raised as to |
the satisfactory nature of the bus |
mess results accomplished by the |
Tennessee Coal and Iron transaction. |
He referred to the governments steps |
for a pool to meet the recent cotton |
crop crisis and asked how anyone |
could know whether, despite the adj
approval, investiga-
tions and indictments might not fol- |
low when another administration
or republican-comes into
power.