Show J I The Th- Public Must Have Facts II I By E. E H H. H H H. H SIMMONS President New York Stock Exchange There has been much discussion this autumn autumn autumn au au- au- au I of the obligation of corporations to fully inform the investing public as to their oper opel This need and the part taken by the leading market for capital in this country in I I fulfilling it are set forth here I The public must have h. all the facts and nothing but tre facts in regard to American corporation affairs affair Tn In the future public opinion will prove a I decisive factor ii In any attempt by the state to regulate regu regu- late capital In consequence nce what is esp especially lally S I needed toda today Is full fun information regarding the operations and policies of ot our corporations as well wen wenas as of the foreign governments that are borrowing I I money of American Investors and that are acting as of this capital In behalf behal of at the people S I whom they represent If the mystery which so frequently used to surround surround sur sur- round the large accumulations of ot American capital h has s largely lifted toda today much of the credit Is of course due to the vigilance vi-ilance and fearlessness ness of the American press Indeed too much praise cannot bo bp accorded our OUI leading journals for the earnest t which the they have steadily exerted to obtain the live truth Absolute truth Is not of course always obtained even en by scientists scientists much much less by bv newspaper news news- paper men under their external necessity of getting their papers speedily to press Misstatements and even blunders In the account of American business which find their way into the papers papel's are sometimes unavoidable Yet even so the press of ot this coun coun- try under its natural limitations is doing doing- a splendid splendid did piece of ot work in bringing tire actual and current current current cur cur- rent facts c concerning modern capitalism home to the entire reading public of ot the countr country The New York stock exchange has long provided still another source of public Information and en enlightenment en- en concerning our larger American corporations cor cor- It is true that thai th Ink p I. I la u un and must be almost exclusively concerned with the I Investment In aspect of corporate aff affairs and that It t cannot make its pressure felt in many of the problems which Involve e the other relationships of ot modern capitalism Yet the tITe fact remains that the investment of oC the modern corporation Is closely closel connected with these other public relationships relationships relation relation- ships of capital today The Influence of ot the stock tock exchange in this respect is il felt primarily In two different ways was For one thing its listing requirements requirements requirements require require- ments have In the the past been a primary Influence in obtaining from the leading American companies current Information lr balance al sheets h r c p I earnings and corporate o t structure The New York ock exchange has lIas alwa al always s 's s Undertaken this quest guest I Imore more adequate corporate Information entirely p halt of the public and I It refuses to receive any n Information which cannot be similarly afforded to th the companies' companies shareholders and Indeed to the public at large In Tn addition the New York stock exchange is our o leading market for capital Genuine merit In corporation securities is quickly discovered on the exchange while on the other hand an any weakness in them becomes apparent with equal fa fa- fa duty As a result stock exchange quotations constitute constitute constitute con con- a sort of health report on t current state slate of modern American capitalism In addition to making publicly available more complete information regarding their operations and affairs American corporations have hae I t feel l the further duty of making their statements as aa ble as possible to the average man There Is also the whole question of oC how liow frequently American corporations corporations- should be expected to give ghe fre lie Public Information concerning their operations In human affairs a a. policy which depends on oi scientific truth always la lg sometimes a strenuous and even en a disappointing policy Dut nut But the position n of f virtual trusteeship which the tho manag managers rs of ot capItal cap cap- Ital are toda today assuming more and more towards toward the theer er very numerous small Investors In who are re becoming the tH owners of oC capital will Increasingly dictate the need of frequent as well as complete and clear statements as to the statistics s. of capital itself I I J t 1926 Co omo oni mo 5 Ne' Ne e loaner S In Inc I |