The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-06-20
Frederick Haskin's Letter
es.ss., ef ne ArEpsl
TRUST EXPERIMENTATION
tspsasi cerTsapeodssea e re :

, tried Dy the leueTal IrdGe iC0mmls-
sion. Chairman GaskilI OF thar
body has notified certain trade as
sociations that while they may not
agree, either directly or indirectly.
to charge certain prices, there NAV
be general understanding thar
prices will be charged between a
named maximum and q named min
imum.
Both of these experiments appear
on the surface to be subject to legal
review, especially The latter and il
is rather doubtful. in the opinion
of trust experts of the department
of Justice, whether either plan will
stand.
The present session of congress
opened a new field for the so-called
benevolent trust by enacting a bill
which exempts farmers cooperative
organizations from prosecution uu-
der the antitrust laws. This law
would permit farmers To market
their goods in groups and while
safeguards are provided intended 10
prevent monopoly, some observers
declare that with the door opened
monopoly is likely to rise up and
will be attacked in the courts 10
test its constitutiOnality, cases al
ready being in preparation for that
purpose.
Labor unions are declared by the
Clayton antitrust law TO be spe-
officially exempt from prosecution
as trusts. But the supreme court.
in the recent Coronado case, and
inferior courts in other cases. have
modified this exemption so as TO
make labor unions amenable to
damages where their combinations
have caused loss through strikes.
in certain circumstances.
Combines of Ancient Origin.
The tendency of business in all
forms to combine against the pub
lie is of ancient origin. No study
of the development of the great in
dustrial corporations, and later Of
the trade associations, can be made
without the discovery of the imp0s-.
sibility of altering profound and i'm
mutable laws of political economy.
People of the same trade" says
Adam Smith, the eminent Scotch
economist. writing generations be
fore the Standard Oil company was
born, seldom meet together. even
for merriment or diversion, but the
conversation ends in a conspiracy
against the public or in some con
trivance to raise prices"
The same economist notes the
presence of {. counter force which
defeats indefinite monopoisuc OPP
preston. In discussing the effects
-
are members of q trade association,
in the form of a guild or labor cor
pOFatiOn, he observes: The real
and effectual discipline which IS
exercised over a workman is not
that of his corporation, but that Of
his customers" BY this it is meant
that the public always is in a great
er conspiracy even than the trades
man or manufacturer. Always seek
ing the article obtainable at the
lowest price, the public constantly
maintains a fight against the high
priced man or combination.
1t is the observation of ecOnom-
lists that while a trust may control
prices and perhaps production for
a season, sooner or later the public
Will find a cheaper source of supply
and break down the monopoly more
certainly than legal processes can
do so.
Students of the rise and fall Of
trusts points out that the motive of
business men or tradesmen to Join
against the public is, regarded IN
one light, self-defensive Every
man who has something to sell and
must depend for his living upon
selling it at a price above what It
costs, feels that the buying public
is in a conspiracy directed against
him in that the public always ia
seeking to find some one who VIII
sell more cheaply-
The indications at Washington
are that there will be a ueYer-ceaS-
ing development of experiment and
legislation directed at the evil NJ
oppressive m0nCpolies and also q
constant constructive movement to-
ward the provision of highly eff
cient means of cooperative indus
trial effort
Lawyers, statesmen and business
men of all branches of industry are
watching with keen interest the ont
come of the two new experiments
in business regulation.