V
Nebraska's Delegation to Chicago Anti-Trust Conference
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LORENZO OROUNSE
PRANK T. RANSOM.
The Anti-Trust Con
vention at Chicago
Nebraska will bo represented at tlie anti
trust conference In Chicago by a delegation
of men who have distinguished themselves
in state and national politics ; men who have
had considerable to do with the shaping of
the policy of political parties within the
state and whoso Influence lias been felt In
the making of national platform declara
tions.
Governor Poynter has named the following
delegation : Colonel William J. Bryan , Hon.
William V. Allen , Hon. Edward Rosowater.
Hon. Lorenzo Crounso , Hon. R. D. Suther
land , Hon Krank T. Ransom and Hon. A.
Hugh Hippie.
The attitude of Colonel Bryan toward the
trust Is well known , as Is that of ex-Senator
Allen. Hon. Edward Rosewater flrst be
came prominent for his advocacy of anti-
n onopoiy measures twenty-five years ago ,
and has ever been a fee of trusts organized
for stock Jobbing and extortion. Ex-Gov
ernor Crtunse has Teen prominently Identi
fied with the anti-monopoly wing of the re
publican party and was called to the gov
ernor's cliulr because of his known senti
ments along these lines.
It goes without saying that Nebraska will
ue heard from at the anti-trust conference
in Chicago In September. Expressions of
opinion have been secured from all the dele
gates and nro here given :
Colonel W. J. Uryan says : ' 'I have not
tlmo to write an extended sentiment In re
gard to the trusts , but you can quote mo
as baying : An Industrial aristocracy Is as
dangeious to free Institutions ns a landed
aristocracy would be. Monopoly moans the
bondage of the many to the few. "
in his book "TUo Lust Battle" Mr. Bryan
has this to say concerning trusts :
"If trusts exist In violation of law they
can bo exterminated only by the enforce
ment of the law. If present laws are in-
Milllclent , now and sufficient laws can be
devised. If the constitution , whkli has been
so construed as to prevent the taxation of
the Incomes of corporations , can bo so con
strued as to protect trusts it Is high tlmo
for a constitutional amendment which will
enable the American pee pi o to protect them-
eo.vtri from trusts. * * I bellovo that the
continued existence of the trust is largely
duo to the fact that many public officials ,
without openly defending It , are at heart
friendly to It. "
Concerning the forthcoming anti-trust con
vention Hon. Edward Rosewater said :
"The first national Anti-trust convention
convened at the Instance of the legislature
of Minnesota In the city of Chicago , In June ,
1895 , and was presided over by then gov
ernor , now Senator Knute Nelson. The con
vention formulated a set of resolutions em
bodying the consensus of conclusions reached
and recommendations made for national
legislation. As chairman of the committee
of resolutions , I was in position to compare
and digest the various views entertained by
the leading members of the convention , and
when the resolutions were presented , It was
closely k. tent to |
upon mo cjiarnpon and defeni ,
in line , wt.ro , it8
adoption. While the radical
up , and monopoly anj ( anti-corporation clement
WILLIAM J BRYAN
sought to commit the cotivcntioti to a. de
mand for the abolition of all corporations ,
the conservative clement , which simply de
sired to curb the power of corporations and
to curtal/ the most pernicious methods of
the trusts , prevailed. The resolutions as
adopted recommended the creation
by congress of a now bureau of
supervision of corporations engaged
In Interstate commerce , very much
on the same lines as the bureau of
the treasury In charge of the comptroller of
the currency.
"Tho aim and purpose of this measure waste
to place the trusts under the surveillance
mid control of the government ; to pi'ace the
government In position to prevent the over
capitalization of these corporations , by re
quiring them to register all stocks and
bonds wl h the bureau of control and making
Illegal a2 ! Issues that did not represent
actual value. It stands to reason that cor
porations honestly conducted would cheer
fully have all their securities registered by
the comptroller , and securities thus certified
to would sell in the market like municipal
bonds or other securities registered and
certified by municipal or state authority.
On the other hand , corporations that have
been inflated and fraudulently capitalized
would evade and resist inquiry into their
affairs , but in the end would bo forced to
submit or bo closed out.
"I have thought a great deal on this subject
since the Chicago convention and have not
changed my views as regards the propriety
of this course. The only other check which
congress can put on the operation of trusts ,
and without seriously interfering with the
operations of competitive commerce Is the
abrogation of patents upon all devices by
which trusts are enabled to have an abso-
Aito monopoly of certain Industries. The
abolition of patents would open the door
wide for competition and make the trusts
harmless. "
Congressman n. D. Sutherland said : "All
political partlos , In their party platforms at
least , are committed against the trusts. Wo
are Informed that the capitalization of the
trusts at this tlmo exceeds $7,500,000,000.
Naturally the Intelligent and patriotic citi
zen is filled with alarm at the almost be
wildering formation of great corporations ,
called trusts , the objects of the formation
of which are to destroy competition and
control the output and price of products.
Mr. Havemeyer , the head of the Sugar trust ,
before the Industrial commission at Wash
ington , said : 'Tho day of the Individual has
passed. If the mass of the people profit
at the expense of the Individual the Indi
vidual must and should go. It is a good
business proposition to get out of the con
sumer all you can. Wo are not In business
for philanthropic motives. If wo sell
cheaply It Is for the purpose of crushing
competition , and wo will oven up afterward. '
If these uro the sentiments held by all who
are connected with the trusts , and there Is
W. V. ALLEN.
no reason to bellovo otherwise , then it is
high tlmo to protect the citizen and con
sumer against the trusts that hnvo no regard
for God or man. The supreme court of In
diana very recently passed upon the ques
tion of trusts In the interest of the people ,
and the supreme court of the United States ,
in the Joint Tralllc association case , uphold
the constitutionality of the anti-trust act
and held that the Joint Tralllc association
was Illegal. I have no doubt but that a
remedy can bo found for the trust evil ami
that the conference at Chicago In September
among other things will propose and discuss
remedies for that which every thinking per
son In our country today believes to bo one
of the most serious evils confronting our
people. "
Dr. A. Hugh Hippie expressed this view
of the subject : "The producers of raw ma
terial , the consumers of finished products ,
the workmen who transform the one Into the
other and the tradesmen who handle thorn
ro all feeling the effects of a disturbing in-
flucnco which they attribute to trusts. All
are clamoring for legislation. They want
a law that will destroy the power of the
trusts throughout the country , or In the
particular state In which they live , for
getting that the stringent laws now upon
the statute books which it was hoped would
have such an effect have been found to bo
practically valueless. It will bo one of the
chief duties of the anti-trust convention to
make clear to the people the fact that all
trusts have not a common origin , and that
different classes of trusts must bo dealt with
in different ways. Some trusts depend upon
tariffs for their existence and can best be
reached through tariff legislation ; some ,
like the Standard Oil company , have been
built ui > through discriminations In freight
rates ; some o\\o their monopoly to fran
chises granted by states and municipalities ;
some control the source of supply of somu
natural product , while still others exist
simply by virtue ol agreements among manu
facturers and dealers as to prices and meth
ods of doing business. A clear understand
ing of these distinctions Is needed In order
to prepare the way for effective legislation. "
The New Cass School
The IILW Cass Street school , a likeness of
which as it will appear when completed ia
produced in this Issue , will be one of thu
model schools of the country. Every con
venience which has been found of advantage
in other cities will bo found In this build
ing.
ing.The
The bids for the building were opened dur
ing the last of May of this year and the
work 'began ' early In Juno. It is expected
that the school iwlll bo ready for occupancy
about December 1. The building will have
two stories and a basement and contain
sixteen rooms. The cost of the school com
plete will bo about $50,000. It will bo prac
tically fireproof , all Interior walls being of
solid brick and the lathing of the celling *
A Ilt'OH H1PPLE
of metal. It will bo heated bj steam
throughout by what Is known as the gravltv
system , which has been found to bo thu
most successful for buildings o ( this char
acter. No building In the city will have a
more perfect sjsleni of ventilation and
lighting. To the lighting especially purlieu
lar attention has been given and the rooms
have been so arranged that they will all bo
lighted alike. The same number of windows
dews have been placed in each romu and thu
desks and blackboards will be arranged HO
that the denominating light will bo fn in
the Jcft. Uy this method the ojos of the
pupils are not subjected to any glaring llglu
while facing the teacher and the black
boards and no shadow la thrown on the work
on their desks.
When completed the CUBS Hc-lmol will un
dollbtedly be the best built and m < st per
fectly arranged school building In the city
The plumbing and sanitation has boon carefully -
fully studied and no more perfect system
of either can bo found unywhoro
When ready for occupancy the now build
ing will take the place of the old Dodge
street school , now used as a Jail , and the
present Cass Street school , which will bo
torn down ,
Ride with the President
The wise general manager of the great
railroad said : " 1 urn never nervous except
when 1 have charge of the president of the
United States. "
Wo were sitting In the m.uugor's car ,
the last one of the long train that was
carrying the president and a p.irly of dis
tinguished Americans from Omaha to Wash
ington , relates a .writer In the 1'hlladelphla
Evening I'ost. The supi'ilntcndent was
there , along with half a do/on minor of
ficials , all undur insti notion as to BOIIIO
phase of the journey then under way.
iMr. Drown , thu general manager of the
northern lines of the Burlington , the com
pany then In control of the president's train ,
was in consultation with Mr. Elliott , gen
eral manager of the southi'iii lines , to which
the train was to pass at the city of Qulncy.
The Pennsylvania Railroad company , fur
nishing the extensive and luxurious equi
page , was represented on board , but the im
mediate conduct of the Important work of
moving the president and his party was , as
It always Is , In the hands of the rullioad
over whoso rails the train as moving.
.Mr. . Brown and Mr. Elllolt glanced at the
speed Indicator. The train was going forty-
eight miles an hour. "Sou Mr. Cortelyou , "
s.xld one of thorn , "and ask hlm If the
president wants to stop at "
The preoldont smilingly said that there
ought to bo a llttlo stop at the place.
"Ono of my old congressional friends
lives there , " ho said.
When the train stopped there was the
usual scurrying of celebrities to the rear
platform. Thu unobsorvliiB would have
THE NEW CASS STREET SCHOOL.
HOWARD ROSIOWTHIl
II. D. SUTHERLAND.
thought that ovei ything was centered there ;
but the general managers and the mipurlu-
tendentu were busy with other duties. Doz
ens of telegrams were taken up some for
the train force , uomo for the secretaries ,
and Bdino for the president himself.
Municipal authorities were nuking for an
extension of time from ten to twenty min
utes , floin ono hour to two. Other tele
grams weio put elf , Homo asking for In
formation us to details of arrangements ,
homo as uimwois to previously lecelved que -
tlons , some positive Instiuullons as to a
cleuiod track , others messugeu of caution
to olllclulu luu in 1 Kti failher on.
Men who have In bund the management
of a presidential train find the crowds hard
to manage. Thousands of eager citizens
swaim uciosu thu trucks and luteifere with
schedule time. So , keeping in mind the
rights of all , the railroad iiiuuugerH aomu-
tlmes find it necessary to resort to Innocunl
trickery. For instance , at Burlington , no
olio save a wise telegraph operator know
lust what ouo of scores of tr.icku the pieul-
denlial train would take. Of course It waa
not the tiuck In the people's mind. So it
was possible for the cars to slip Into their
berths without the slightest delay. The
uicsldcnt and his companions were In car
riages on the way to the public speaking
HI and before the crowds at the station woio
nine of his arrival. They were , fooled , of
course , but the llltlo trick was nocessury ,
or the program would have been seriously
duluyed , not for Burlington ulotie , but for
other towns fur ahead.
This particular day had been a hard one.
DU/.OIIS of speeches had been madu In a
Hliong wind. Still others were to be made-
In Itio ovenlng us Into an 11 o'clock. Tliu
next day the president wnn to speak In a
lingo city.
Ono of his Hiicioturlcs wan manifestly wor
ried lost the exiHUitlvo would not have f > u-
llclenl rest. I'lio general managem talked
it over. It wan decided to speed the train
early in the evening , In order that It might
bo run more slowly after the president had
lellied. Then there wan yet. another thing
to do completely tlmngo the I on to. comu
( no suggested Unit certain towns would ho
Keenly disappointed.
"Not lifter midnight , " said one of the
general managers. "On thu other hand ,
ihero may lie small crowds ut some of thu
( owns on the a/lvortisod route , and these
will bo un re , with bands and shouting , to
kcup the prcHldciitlu ! party awake. " ,
The wisdom of thu com no was plain to be
coon. So there was more telegraphing , to
iho end that through the lute bourn of the
nlghti Iho prcsldentlul train run over an un-
advurtlted route , only to get back to the
scheduled trucks by the time the party had
breakfasted. All night long one of the
Kenorul inanagorH But ut his desk reading
and writing turegrums , receiving officials of
thu train and watching the speed Indicator.
When , at noun the next day , the train
passed to the hands of another railroad com
pany , the general manager of thu night before -
fore was sleepless , but ho hud n re.sted feel
ing tin Jio saw thu great train safe and sound
under the Eheds , and thu president , bright-
uyed and refreshed , bowing from 11 carriage
that worked UB tedious way through a
crowded etreet.