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DECEMBER 14, 190G .
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9
Its citizens by an appeal to arms. It is much to
bo wished that all foreign governments would
take the same view."
This subject was one of the topics of consid
eration at the conference at Rio and a resolution
was adopted by that conference recommending
to the respective governments represented "to
consider the advisability of asking the second
peace conference at The Hague to examine the
question of the compulsory collection of public
debts, and, in general, means tending to diminish
among nations conflicts of purely pecuniary
origin." This resolution was supported by the rep
resentatives of the United States.
(Prom the Madison Square Speech.)
I venture to suggest that we may not only
promote peace but also advance our commer
cial interests by announcing as a national policy
that our navy will not be used for the collection
of private debts. While protecting the lives of
our citizens everywhere and guaranteeing
personal safety to all who owe allegiance to our
flag, we should, in my judgment, announce that
persons engaging in business and holding prop
erty in other lands for business purposes must be
subject to the laws of the countries in which they
engage in business enterprises. Many profitable
fields of investment are now closed because the
people of the smaller nations are afraid that an
investment of foreign capital will be made an ex
cuse for a foreign invasion. Several times on
this trip this fact has been brought to my atten
tion and I am convinced that for every dollar we
could secure to American investors by an attempt
to put the government back of their private claims
we would lose many dollars by closing the door
to investment. Mark the distinction between the
protection of the lives of our citizens and the
use of the navy to guarantee a profit on invest
ments. We do not imprison for debt in the United
States, neither, do we put men to death because
tof their failure to pay what they owe, and our
..moral prestige as well as our commercial inter
ests will be conserved by assuring all nations that
American investments depend for protection upon
the laws of the country to which the investors go.
FEDERAL LICENSE FOR CORPORATIONS
(From Mr. Roosevelt's Message.)
It can not too often be repeated that experi
ence has conclusively shown the impossibility of
securing by the actions of nearly half a hundred
different state legislatures anything but ineffec
tive chaos in the way of dealing with the great
corporations which do not operate exclusively
Within the limits of any one state. In some
method, whether by a national license law or in
other fashion, we must exercise, and that at an
early date, a far more complete control than at
present p.ver these great corporations a control
that will, among other things, prevent the
evils of excessive overcapitalization, and that will
compel the disclosures by each big corporation
of its stockholders and of its properties and busi
ness, whether owned directly or through subsi
diary or affiliated corporations. This will tend
to put a stop to the securing of inordinate profits
by favored individuals at the expense whether of
the general public, the stockholders, or the wage
workers. Our effort should be not so much to
prevent consolidation as such, but so to supervise
and control it as to see that it results in no harm
to the people.
(From the Madison Square Speech.)
Recent investigations have brought to light
the fact that nearly all the crookedness revealed
in the management of our large corpora
tions has been due largely to the dupli
cation of directorates. A group of men
organized, or obtained control of, several corpor
ations doing business with each other and then
proceeded to swindle, the stockholders of the va
rious corporations, for which they acted. No man
can serve two masters, and the director who at
tempts to do so will fail, no matter how much
money he makes, before his failure is discovered.
Many of the trusts control prices by the same
methods. The same group of men secure control
of several competing corporations and the man
agement is thus consolidated. It is worth while
to consider whether a blow may not be struck at
the trusts by a law making it illegal for the same
person to act as director or officer of two corpor
ations, which deal with each other or are en
gaged in the same general business.
A still more far-reaching remedy was pro
posed by the democratic platform of 1900, namely,
the requiring of corporations to take out a federal
license before engaging in interstate commerce.
This remedy is simple, easily applied and com
prehensive. The requiring of a license would not
The Commoner
embarass legitimate corporations-It would scarce
he Z7J?CUC0 thcmrwhI1 Jt woud conflno
ohhS red?t0?r corporations to the state of their
origin. Just as a federal license to sell liquor
leaves the possessor of the license to sell only In
accordance, with the laws of the state In which
no resides, so a corporate license granted by a
federal commission would not lntorfero with tho
right of each state to regulate foreign corpora
tions doing business within its borders.
If corporations were required to take out a
federal license the federal government could then
issue the license upon the terms and conditions
which would protect the public. A corporation
differs from a human being in that it has no nat
ural rights and as all of its rights arc derived
from the statutes it can be limited or restrained
according as the public welfare may require. Tho
control which congress has over interstate com
merce is complete and if congress can prevent the
transportation of a lottery ticket through tho
mails, by the express companies dr by freight, it
can certainly forbid the use of the mails, tho
railways and the telegraph lines to any corpora
tion which is endeavoring to monopolize an article
of commerce, and no party can long be credited
with sincerity if it condemns (ho trusts with
words only and then permits tho trusts to employ
all the instrumentalities of interstate commerce
in the carrying out of their nefarious plans. It i3
far easier to prevent a monopoly than to watch
it and punish it, and this prevention can bo ac
complished in a practical way by refusing a license
to any corporation which controls more than a
certain proportion of the total product this pro
portion to be arbitrarily fixed at a point which
will give free operation to competition.
FROM THE PEOPLE
"American Farmer," Albany, O. The far
mer sells his cattle to the beef trust (hide
and hair) for 3 cents to 6 cents per pound.
The beef trust sells the hides to the tannery or
leather trust 'for 13 cents to 15- cents per pound.
The leather trust, under the protection of a high
tariff on dressed leather, sells tho shoe and har
ness manufacturer leather for 40' cents to 80
cents per pound.
The manufacturer, under the protection of
a high tariff on shoes and harness, sells the re
tail merchant. The retail merchant who has to
pay high protective prices to the manufacturer
sells this leather back to the farmer in shoes
and harness, as well as to every man, woman
and child, at protection prices. Wo are told that
the high tariff on leather and hides Is for the
benefit of the American farmer, who has to sell
the hides on cattle for 3 cents to 4 conts per
pound. The question Is, "Who pays the tariff,"
and who is benefited. Answer, the beef and the
leather trusts.
Wanted, a breed of cattle to grow only hides
that can be skinned four times a year or a
modification In the Dingly tariff.
Charles D. Kelso, Alexandria, South Dakota.
I can not see how any thinking man can still
vote for the high protective tariff. A short quo
tation from the Burlington (Iowa) Gazette will
explain to you why I am a democrat and opposed
to the republican idea of tariff. It says: "Tho
whole issue of the tariff turns upon whether the
people of the United States will decide to con
tinue paying high prices for all they buy and
continue to add to the enormous profits of the
protected trusts." It again says: "Wages and
incomes of the workingmen, small tradesmen,
clerks and wageearners have not increased in
like proportion to the increased cost of living,
for it now takes $1.48 to buy what cost $1.00 in
1897, while incomes have only increased on an
average of 14 per cent" That should explain to
all readers that it is to their interest to see
by their votes that the corporation Is unable to
make such conditions. Roosevelt has not as yet
gotten at the matter and given us any relief and
his platform will not allow him to do so. I say
above that a quotation will explain to you why
I am a democrat, but by that I mean why I am In
favor of the democratic Idea on the tariff ques
tion. I was told I was a democrat because my
father was and should get out of the old rut. I
determined to find out why I was a democrat
and by investigation I soon decided the matter
and am a democrat because the democrats work
for the masses and not for a few. I found that
whon wo had had hard times It wan bocauso of
republican legislation and when wo had good
times it was because some democratic principle
had been made a part of the law of our land.
I do not consider that tho proacnt conditions
arc mid should bo termed good times. Because
tho rich bocomo richer and hav6 mora to sell and
can command greater profits is no proof what
ever that the man who did tho work for tho profit
gainer over profited a cent, and tho facta aro
that ho did not profit one cent but it was made
harder for him to secure a living though his wages
might have been Increased. I bellovo in profit
and good times to the masses and not tho clashes.
Mr. Moffett in Ills articles on "The Shameful Mis
use of Wealth" in tho Success Magazine of Homo
months ago shows very plainly that the rich aro
becoming richer and buying articles that cost
from seven to thirty thousand dollars each does
not in any manner help the poor laborer who
made the costly article. Ills employer Is rich
but because he sold tho article for such a fabu
lous price doos not induce him to ralsa hlu om
ployees' wages. This quantity of money circu
lating therefore does not aid tho masses. If I got
$1.00 per day and can live on fifty cents I am
better off than when I get $1.14 per day and it
ccsts mo $1.00 to live. Tho Commoner handles
all questions and exposes all matters in a manner
highly pleasing to mo and whon this lotter reaches
you I want you to imow it comes from an ardent
Commoner supporter, who continue to do for
it what ho. can. Best wishes to Tho Commoner.
"P. F, S.," Brownington, Missouri Today
this country has not tho problem of black
slavery to deal with, but one which is not less
dangerous and Js far moro difficult to grapple With.
On tho one hand there is the growing menace of
rabid socialism not unllko rabid abolition in its
spirit and on the other hand, the radical Individ
ualism of the moneyed classes whoso ultimate
aim is tho autocracy of wealth. As the problem
forces itself upon the notice of the people, many
arc taking tho standpoint of a foolish conserva
tism that seeks to allay the national disease by
compromises rather than to undertake Ha euro
by a systematic treatment along tho lines of prin
ciple The greatest tragedy In our history might
have been averted if the masses of tho people
had awakened in time to the real truth of tho
danger which fronted them. Their blindness and
timidity permitted tho evil to grow between two
extremes till war was inevitable. Now an awaken
ing of the people to the real danger that lies in
the corruption and misuse of wealth, which throat
ens to destroy the free citizenship of our country,
if it is not itself destroyed, might avert another
national tragedy that has been looming on our
horizon for some decades. There are leaders, truly
conservative, in that they aro willing to abide
by truth and wait for its peaceable solution, who
might steer our ship of state safely between tho
Charybdls of tho autocracy of capital and the
Scylla of Insane socialism, if the people would
but lay their hands to the oars and pull. There
is no safe middle course save that which aims
straight at the ultimate facts of the evil with the
purpose of removng its cause by legislating the
power of moneyed capital into subordination to
the power of the human capital of character and
merit. Leaders are always sent for a purpose,
be It either to guide a revolution of ideas or a
revolution of the last resort force. The wtee will
always seek to revolutionize the world with Ideas,
and that man who embodies the noblest and san
est of them in his doctrine will be their torch
bearer and champion. The national crisis may
seem too far ahead to arouse much apprehension
yet, but the way of safety between the growing
whirlpools of autocracy and socialism is becoming
narrower as the fat years waddje by in the in
difference of stupidity. Nations, as well as in
dividuals, must finally reckon with their sins of
indiscretion as well as those of the will, and
the wise leader sees this day of reckoning when
afar off. But not till the people call for the right
thing from their hearts can they either hope to ob
tain it or to keep it safely when once in their pos
session. If the people ever call for the right thing
in such sincerity, it will be when they face the
facts that confront them with the simplicity of
truth in their hearts. For there is, and can be,
no true democracy, other than the simple democ
racy which picks the. one fact from the mountain
heaps of complexity, which all but bury it under,
and with a child-like indifference to make-believers,
clings with the passion of nature to the
principles of elemental truth and universal
justice.
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