OCR Text |
Show FACTS STATED. "William t'proule, president of the Pacific system of the Southern Pacific company, analyzed the business situation' sit-uation' in this country at the annual dinner of the Traffic club in Chicago, and his words are well worthy of serious seri-ous attention, not only upon the part of the casual readers of newspapers, but the lawmakers as well. Of course Mr. Sproule is primarily interested in the transportation business, but he knows that the railroads cannot flourish unless un-less the merchants and manufacturers, tho mine operators aud farmers, are prosperous, so his remarks have a general gen-eral application. Mr. Sproule does cot believe bus:- nes conditions would be better if business busi-ness men believed t hey would be better, bet-ter, in fact, he does not subscribe to the psychology theory in the remotest degree. To Mr. Sproule "s mind the : preeut bard conditions are. actual end not a mere figment of the brain. This, result he attribute? to the attacks of the politirian? fur .mi; years past, and the efforts of ronyres to make big business conform to a set of rules or laws under which it U impossible to gt a fai r return for the money invested. In fact, the corpora' ions have been and are being harassed in a multitude of ways, and business of all kinda has come almost to a full stop in consequence. conse-quence. The reason so many working men and women aro idle, say? Mr. fSproule, is because the employer is out of employment. employ-ment. If the employer has nothing to do but wait for a change in wind and tide, of course the employee is thrown out of work. The political economists cannot remedy this situation by imposing im-posing their theories upon tho public mind. What is needed is the repeal of some of the laws passed to carry out certain of these economic theories. Mont business men will agree with Mr, sproule that American enterprise should have a chance to develop in the future as it has in the past wii hout, being hedged about with cumbersome and worse than useless lavs, and the constant con-stant interference of a myriad of commissions, com-missions, both state and national. James J. Hill, hod of the Great Northern mid one of the mor-t progres- . aive and enterprising financiers of the pre-ent generation, was unable to be' present ft the meeting of ihvi Traffic Hub, but he nent a letter which fully exprefps the views of the progressive a? well as the tnot conservative busi-nrrs busi-nrrs man. Mr. Hill blame- the legislation legisla-tion pa--"'d by congress in the lat two vears for the greater' part of th'j bui-ne-s evils from which the peoplo of the fun n try a re .pint now- fee i ng the ef -f e-r-t To b'giu with, the radical re-i. re-i. ion rf the tariff npct. buiriefs ;nd rornnicp'O hai not, yef. adjusted itself K, tb'- new M-heduleji. Th'-ri a new rijr;ericy svteoi hai le en put. into operation, v hieh Mr. Hill i.:; frank to eonfow-j the public jih a whole believer will work out, well. H'ih (tun opi nion i i that it will t;i 1. o time and experi'Mif j to tiring in praci iff) if 1 merit.'j ;hkJ fault". In an-.' event it, w.ia a viobfit fh:inr4r- from the old I en i and played a pari, in unsettling the bi' mfs-: rif 1 he fONntrv, ntorf e.::ieciallv ;vb il" it at 1 ) rig d u1 "! in both rutle ;uid houM-. The f.vl, that a grf,af majority M' the h'litl.erFi were np-po-"d to it. and I'-.i'-'c votv. to their ; if,-, ,, added to the ;..pr'-h'TJMoij of tho.e -ho fnred finan"inl d ;-:.( -.r. Mr. Hill b-!i"-ei that tli--- I o ok-,... iitf'l alone e.onb) romp'! Ini-ine-i iniii f o U e t po.-Hble ',;inf i N the .ond'i'-l nt' t imr lpir itn'- ', u f he .or-', .a; , e o e.,jtie. onr.'re j:ty-.i a rrierr'.'ire ouidinj' )'"" '' " '' '!' ' l-j ri nt r r r ion, the member- 'd' 'hjeh hiiw p,- I be-tl llfjJlM-d bv the pre I.oit but ,,,,1 a et e.,,ifiriM"d b' Hi- M-nale. Tli , . la j a ii u- r' ion of I he n;:l,l Ih- ..d-al ;;m e, "k i,t. " I o ronli'd and regulate Imsiness as a whole, the peaceful, legitimate conduct of ordinary ordi-nary affairs,' ' according to the view ot ' Mr. Hill. He believes congress will . seek to extend its powers and make its control more absolute, unless there n a radical change in tho sentiment ot the country. The Clayton bill Mr. Hill brands as both crude and ridiculous, a piece ot class legislation by which the same act. done in the same way and for the same purpose, ie illegal by a manufacturing or trading concern, and legal by a , labor or agricultural concern. Of course this provision will be contested in the : courts, but there will be years of Htiga- tion. worry and vexation if in the I meantime it is allowed to remain upon the statute boohs. Happily for the country the railroad securities bill was allowed to -die by its spqnsors, cr the finishing touches would have been put upon business of all. kinds, tho common carriers especially, espe-cially, ts till more happily congress w"ll adjourn next week and will not meet 'again until next December, giving the business men an opportunity to catch , their breath and invest their money under tho existing laws without, being oppressed by a vague dread ttoat some new piece of legislation based upon the theory of a political economist will be enacted and sweep away the accumulations accumula-tions of a lifetime. |