Evening star., 1915-01-18
Samuel Untermyer First Wit
ness Before Federal Indus
trial Commission.
GREAT FOUNDATIONS
NECESSARY, HE SAYS
Criticises Concentration of Power
and Capital, and Considers 1t
Unfair to Labor.

NEW YORK. January fS.-At tlIs
first hearing here today by the federal
industrial relations commission in tts
Investigations of the operations OF tho
great philanthropic foundations Sam
uel Untermyer was the first witness.
Another witness at today's session Will
be Roger w. Babson. writer on eco-
nomics. The session was presided over
by Frank p. Walsh. chairman of the
commission. Mr.. Walsh arrived yes
terday to go over the data obtained
by a corps of Investigators at worA
here for two weeks.
The commission plans to hear ]. P.
Morgan Thursday and Monday John ID.
Rockefeller, jr., will testify. At sub
sequent hearings George w. Perkius,
John Hays Hammond. Andrew Car
negie. DIR. Charles W. Eliot. Daniel
Guggenheim. Jacob Schiff. August Bel
mont, John Mitchell. Louis d. Brandets.
Prof. Franklin II. Giddings, Samuel
Gompers. Henry Ford. A. Barton Hep
burn, Robert W. DE Forest, Seth Low
and many other prominent men. as
well women, will be called as Wit
nesses.
socialistic charity at some length. The
latter. he asserted. is necessary IL tho
people are to receive relief. The large
C charitable foundations. Mr.. Cntermyer
thought, were ably managed and dih
much good. He believed. however, that
they should be reorganized and should
operate under federal charters rather
than under charters granted by states.
Criticises Money Combines.
Speaking of the concentration of
money, Mr.. Untermyer said he knew
of a banking interest which, througn n
the reorganization Of insolvent rail-
roads, had come into the control OF
CO. 900 miles of railroads in the United
States.
When such a situation exists, the wit
ness said, the shareholders have no
power at all in the management of tn"
roads: the directors and trustees are
controlled entirely by the banks.
Mr. Untermyer said he thought labor
conditions i'm America had been more ar
less demoralized, and that poverty had
been increased by the diversion of cash
in certain directions.
The Illicit gathering OF large auanti-
ties of money undoubtedly has caused
considerable poverty he said. 1T Ia
true. however. that in the past few years
this condition has not been SO bad.
THE concentration of power and capi-
tai of any kind is grossly unfair to
la bor.''
Mr. walsh questioned Mr. ntermNer
about the Colorado Fuel and Iron Com
pany.
1T has been testified" said the COM
missioner, that a certain large fnan-
cial interest did not control the COM
pany because it only held 40 per cent
of the stock"
Explains Control of Companies.
THAT is preposterous." replied thu
witness. The stock is listed on tho
exchange. and many shares are in the
hands of brokers. 1t would be neces-
sary for a large financial interest to
have but 10 per cent of the stock
When 1t wants to do anything with the
corporation il just sends around to the
brokers and get the proxies.
Mr.. Untermyer said that ii was rare
when directors running corporation
from New York knew anything about
the business. They are Just figure
heads" he said.
Referring again to the four founda-
tions under investigation and to his
declaration that they should operate
under federal charter, Mr.. Untermyer
said:
They should not be given a per-
petual charter. There should be a
limit to their size. They should not
be permitted to accumulate income.
There should be governmental repre-
sentation when the time comes for re-
placing the present trustee"