PART VII.

CONCLUSIONS.

Let us assume that in the preceding pages we have proved the following propositions:

1. That the Trust cannot and must not be destroyed.

2. That the government could not and should not own and operate the Trusts.

3. That the Trust, if not interfered with, will work great injury to society and that therefore some stringent action must be taken.

4. That such action must be such as will not destroy the many virtues of the Trust.

INTERDEPENDENCE.

Let us assume that we have also proven the following propositions:

1. That every man is dependent upon his fellows for all the necessaries and comforts of life.

2. That every industry is dependent upon other industries.

3. That the natural, proper and inevitable tendency is toward specialization and localization.

4. That, as men specialize, and industries localize, a natural monopoly results.

5. That each man and each industry becomes an integral part of an immense industrial machine.

6. That harmonious action of this machine must exist, for the reason that if a single wheel is misplaced here, or an engineer refuses to respond there, the action of the entire machine is impaired.

In the face of these two groups of premises but one conclusion can be drawn, and that conclusion may be expressed in a single word—ORGANIZATION! Men, localities and industries being interdependent, society must organize for the general welfare. A league or association must be formed, in which every man, every locality and every industry is represented. Like all other societies, this association must have a common head or center. It need not be altruistic (as against egoistic), because the welfare of one must be the concern of all, if for no other than purely selfish motives. The whole must see that every part properly performs its work. A man can no longer be an isolated unit, for he is now an integral and necessary part of society. He not only owes duties to himself, he owes duties to society. He must recognize the mutuality of all true human interests.

GOVERNMENT.

Can such an association or society be organized? Can so immense a collection of bodies meet and combine with unanimity? Fortunately, we need not speculate on the correct answer to these questions. We have an illustrious example at hand. Society has already organized. The organization is improperly called government. Government is simply organized society. We elect a President as a public servant, not as a governor. He does not, or should not, reign over us, but serve us, and do our bidding. This is not a monarchy, but a democracy.

And so the great machine is already organized. Unfortunately we are not in the habit of looking at government as a huge industrial machine, and our law makers are too prone to assume arbitrary and tyrannical power, regardless of the theory of democracy upon which all our institutions rest. Furthermore, our lawmakers are mostly lawyers, rather than industrialites.

NATIONAL DIRECTION.

Either organized society (government) is supposed to protect its members (citizens), or it is not. If it is, then it is its duty to see that the necessaries of life are not monopolized and placed beyond the reach of its people. If it is not, then the organization is a failure, for without the means of sustenance a nation cannot exist. If, then, we may be permitted to view government as an organization of society having for its aim the welfare and protection of its members, why shall not that society have power to DIRECT the industrial machine? If all men and industries in the nation are interdependent, why shall there not be a NATIONAL DIRECTION, so that every industry shall be made to do its duty toward society? If people must have coal, or oil, or meat, or transportation, or gloves, and one set of men or one locality has a monopoly thereof, why shall not the nation DIRECT that those men or those localities shall do right by all other men and by all other localities? That they will not always do so in the absence of national direction is evidenced by the recent strike. The labor unions of the country are probably able and willing to support the strikers for years when a vital principle is involved, and so thoroughly is labor organizing that serious conditions are likely to obtain in that most important of all industries, transportation, to which industry all others are so closely related and on which they are so helplessly dependent.

FIXING PRICES.

If government is to "promote the general welfare" by assuming the obligation of keeping the necessaries of life within the reach of its people, it must of necessity prohibit the fixing of prices of those necessaries beyond the purchasing power of the people. Thus, if the coal operators having a monopoly of coal choose to make the price of that necessary $50 a ton, the national board of arbitrators (be it Congress or some other body), must fix a reasonable price and if the employees of any industry have a grievance, they cannot be allowed to strike and stop work—their grievances must be arbitrated by the National Board. Probably such a course would never become necessary, when the industrial organization is perfected and the readjustment accomplished, but the power of national direction must be ever present, if for no other purpose than to act as a warning.

FIXING HOURS OF WORK.

What is true of prices is equally true of the hours of work. Government will not owe every man a living, but it will owe every man an opportunity to earn a living. As the principle of co-operation develops and is utilized, so great would be the economy that many would naturally be thrown out of employment. Thus, rather than create a public poorhouse, or "idle house," the hours of daily work must be reduced to include all who are able and willing to labor.

If the tobacco manufacturers by combining and organizing the Shoe Trust have thrust say 50,000 travelling salesmen and jobbers out of employment, it should not complain if they are nationally directed to contribute toward their support in the same or in some other more useful and productive industry by being directed to reduce the hours of work of all men who are employed by it, thus making room for all who desire to labor. Co-operation and combination carry their responsibilities, and the co-operators must be presumed to intend the natural consequences of their acts. Hence, the nation is justified in directing a reduction in the hours of work whenever occasion requires.

And this is not so radical as at first appears. Many of our State Legislatures have heretofore passed laws fixing the price of gas, telephone service and railroad rates, and they have even fixed the hours of daily work in certain industries. Again, witness the volumes of law in regard to buildings, sweat shops, hotels, mines and railroads, designed and passed for "public safety" and protection, and for "the general welfare."

Again, witness what was done by all governments during the Great War!

LABOR'S SHARE.

Those who claim that "labor creates all wealth" must concede that the foreman, the superintendent, the president and the manager is just as much a laborer as the man who wields a hammer or drives a truck. That the latter do not often get a fair share of the product or of "what he produces" is, of course, true, for "rent, interest and profit" eat up much of the proceeds of his toil. Without delving needlessly into the profound question of the relations between capital and labor, be it said that labor can, by a system of national direction such as is here suggested, obtain a fair and just reward for its toil through a system of compulsory profit-sharing. There are already many cases in America of voluntary profit-sharing with employes, and employers have found that their men work better, quicker and more faithfully when given an interest in the business. This is not urged as a necessary part of the national direction idea, but as a most desirable part, and I am of opinion that in compulsory profit-sharing with employes lies the real solution and adjustment of the differences between capital and labor.

COMPULSION.

The word "compel" is a harsh word. It strikes at personal liberty and individual freedom and attacks that spirit of independence which makes men brave, honest and noble.

The theory of democracy assumes that every man has an inherent and absolute right to freedom and liberty in so far as in exercising that right he does not impair the rights of his fellows. He is the sole judge of what he wants and of what is best for him, but in satisfying those wants he must not interfere with the rights of others.

Law and government are designed to protect those rights, and in so doing the right of compulsion is implied. All our institutions, courts, laws and legislative departments rest upon the power of compulsion, and without that power our form of government becomes ineffective. We compel a man to keep his contract by applying to the court for an injunction; we compel the vicious to obey certain laws or we imprison him; we compel railroads to charge not more than a certain fare; we compel house owners to clear their sidewalks of snow; we compel men to pay other men what they owe, and if they do not, we compel the sheriff to take away his property; we compel importers to pay a tariff; we compel husbands to support their families, and we compel all to help support the government by taxation.

The more civilization advances, the more society finds it necessary to organize; and the more organized society is, the more compulsion is necessary, until men become more perfect. Every individual now owes duties to the collectivity as well as to himself, and the power of compulsion must be vested in the collectivity so that those duties may be enforced.

If we have arrived at that stage of progress when every man can be depended upon to perform his whole duty by respecting the rights of others, keeping his contracts and doing only those things which will benefit society, and if the Trust can be depended upon to charge reasonable prices, pay just wages and in all things respect the rights of others, then the word compulsion may be stricken from the political dictionary. If we have not, if men are still selfish, dishonest and inconsiderate of the rights of other men, then the right to compel must be a part of the political machinery.

TAXATION.

The question may be asked, What power can compel the Trusts to do that which they have been directed to do by the nation? For example, suppose the coal mines remained idle,—what if the operators refused to obey the national directory? It is not the purpose of this brief writing to draw up a complete code, showing in detail how each and every man, industry and question shall be handled, but simply to show that such a code can be drawn and its regulations enforced. How do we now compel the electric lighting companies to charge not more than a certain rate, the importers to pay a tariff, the gas companies to supply us with gas at certain prices, the law-breaker to pay his fine, and the corporations to pay their taxes and penalties? These methods are well known, and they would perhaps be adequate if adopted by the nation to compel its members to keep its rules and regulations. If not, a certainly effective means of inducement would be found in a tax on land values; for then, if a Trust refused to obey, the land upon which it rests could be so taxed as to render it unprofitable to hold it idle, and the Trust managers would soon be compelled either to operate or sell the plant. The land monopoly evil is serious and threatening, since all our land is owned by about ten per cent. of our people, and, unfortunately, we are in the habit of inviting men to buy vacant land and hold it idle while waiting for a rise in values. The earth being the source of all wealth, those who monopolize the land have a first lien upon all production. There appears to be no immediately practicable remedy for this deplorable and unnatural state of affairs, yet it is quite certain that whether or not the contention of the Single Taxers is sound, national direction will be a step in the right direction; for it will mean a more compact and more perfect organization of society, and then we shall be able to see more clearly just where the evils exist, just what is at fault, and just what would remedy the defects in our present system. Besides, it would permanently fix the taxing power in the national collectivity, and when the various methods of taxation were being considered in the national councils, the law of cause and effect could more easily be traced and distinguished owing to the solidarity of society and the specific information and complaint that would be forthcoming from the most competent and well informed sources.

CONSTITUTIONS.

Must the constitution be amended in order that NATIONAL DIRECTION shall be put into effect? And, if so, would it take eight or ten years before this could be done? And is that constitution of ours, which has carried us so successfully through a century and a quarter, so sacred that it should be kept, with religious fidelity, unchanged and unaltered? Recent events seem to cry out No!

As times and conditions change, so do men, opinions and laws, and so should constitutions. It is superstitious bigotry to hold that our revolutionary forefathers were infallible and that they could and did foresee the conditions that are present in the opening years of the second century after theirs.

On November 15th, 1777, the thirteen original colonies were banded together under what was called the "Articles of Confederation." Article II thereof said in part: "Each State retains its sovereignty, freedom and independence." Article III said: "The said States hereby severally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other, for their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other." In the following articles they vested in the Congress full power to make such rules and regulations as it deemed best for the general welfare of all the people.

Now, if all of the industries and labor organizations of the nation were to meet and agree to do as did the thirteen States, each reserving the right to send delegates to an empowered convention, then that convention would have power to pass such laws as were necessary to carry out the remedies hereinbefore suggested.

If a constitution nearly a century and a half old, which has already been amended seventeen times, stands in the way of advancement and the general welfare, would any man say that the obstacle should not speedily be removed from that constitution?

The solution herein suggested does not necessarily require action by Congress, and therefore an amendment to the constitution may not be required. Nevertheless, a Congress could be empowered to act, and if it were properly constituted and contained business men and representatives from all industries and labor organizations, instead of lawyers and politicians, it would answer the very purpose. Perhaps in time the people will learn what kind of men to send to Congress. NATIONAL DIRECTION would not necessarily require an immense industrial department of government. NATIONAL DIRECTION is not national ownership. It does not embrace the idea of absolute control. It does not place the management of the Trusts in the hands of a department of government, or of a Congress, for each industry should continue to manage its own affairs, since it alone can be thoroughly conversant with the details of its own plant.

I have aimed to show:

1. That the Trust has as many virtues as faults.

2. That it can be so treated as to retain its virtues and to eliminate its faults.

3. That the Trust must not be destroyed.

4. That the government must not own and operate the Trust and Industrial Combinations.

5. That NATIONAL DIRECTION is the only scientific and practical solution.

The arguments herein are intended to show the advantages and practicability of NATIONAL DIRECTION of our industries, and the harmonious operation of those natural laws and forces which are incessantly working out their destiny. The inherent instincts of man, his nature, his desires, his ambitions, his weaknesses must all be considered in forming conclusions. That which is right will finally prevail. We may retard the onward march of civilization, but we cannot permanently check it. Not only does reason and logic urge the acceptance of the conclusions herein presented, as it appears to the writer, but unmistakable evidences of a natural movement in the direction indicated are now apparent.

If the premises given are sound, NATIONAL DIRECTION is desirable. If the conclusions are logical, NATIONAL DIRECTION is inevitable.