THE ABUSE OF POWER

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 7271, 26 September 1933, Page 3

THE ABUSE OF POWER

Banks and “Big Business” KUTHLESS QUEST FOR GOLD DEFIANCE OF PUBLIC INTEREST THE PRESENT BE ACTION (By T.C.L.—No. 10.) In tliat classic of modern literature, “The Epic of America,” which, tells in masterly fashion the story of the variegated past, tho progress and tho development of the United States since the secession from England, James Truslow Adams deals unsparingly with the unsavoury and scandalous activities of the big financial interests and corporations. To understand America to-d-ay, to appreciate tho viewpoint of its people in regard to their own and the world's problems, his frank admissions, his indictment and his recital of tho nefarious operations of these interests must be carefully studied. Jay Gould, Daniel Drew and Commodore Vanderbilt, and other millionaires of their period, possessed no patriotism, no sense of righteousness or justice, not oven common decency. They regarded tho whole country as their own preserve to exploit for their own benefit without regard for the intorests of others or tho nation. They defied the public, they defied the law, and when they were blocked by legislative action they bought off tho legislators. The author mentions that on one occasion Drew, Gould and Fisk actually printed ten million dollars worth of bogus certificates of stock, and afterwards by corrupt means had the bogus issue legalised. These malodrious financiers stopped at nothing, so • long a.s they achieved thoir evil ends and added to their stupendous piles of gold. They debauched the public morale, the slimy trail leading to Senators and other leaders of the land and perilously close to Presidents themselves.

Stupendous Trusts. Following the unlamented deaths of these financial freebooters, came others equally ambitious to achieve vast fortunes, legitimately if possible, illegitimately if not. In tho process some did excellent, work in. developing the country’s vast natural resources, in constructing and operating trans-continen-tal railways, in improving harbours, in building up wonderful industrial enterprises. Then came consolidation and trusts, which laid tho foundations for stupendous fortunes and almost, unlimited power over tho lives and fortunes of the working people. But like their predecessors, they soon began to aibuse their trust by unmercifully exploiting the public and anti-trust laws were invoked. But money again spoke eloquently and decisively, and the laws were defied when it suited th 6 trusts and corporations to do so. Everywhere there was close alliance between the corrupt financiers and corrupt public officials. The American business man—which meant almost the

entire electorate of the prosperous classes—was not particularly concerned about the course of events. He had adopted the plan of allowing his governments, municipal and State, to be run by hired men in the form of politicians so a-s to leave him free to pursue more lucrative callings. However, in a world getting rich quickly, the hired man wanted his “cut” also. Bribery and corruption became general. “Boss” Tweed, Mayor of New York, and his gang carried off loot from the city treasury to au amount which was variously estimated at from forty-five to two hundred million dollars. A courthouse, planned to cost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, cost over eight million dollars. There was no limit to the voracity of the municipal and other boodlcrs.

No Regard For Others The “big” men, big in fortune but little in every thing wholesome and true, never for a moment thought in terms of social or national welfare. Occasionally a millionaire would compound with his conscience or attempt to placate public sentiment by leaving some of his money after his death, when he could no longer enjoy it, to a charitable purpose. One rascal even founded a theological seminary in his will, but for the most part the earlier financial " conquistadorcs ’ were as ruthlessly unsocial in their activities as any pirate who ever strode a bloody quarter-deck. The rapidly rising figures for fortunes which could bo and were being accumulated marked the fast tempo of life and acquisition. Frequently their owners at death were perniciously hold up as models for ambitious American youth. They did indeed have to possess daring and courage, as does a bootleg king of the present day, as well as ruthlessness. What gave them the chance to operate upon their new scale w-as tho increasing size of the nation itself-—tho railway system, the domestic market, the natural resources aud the vast, population of ordinary citizens with their necessities and desires. The tools with which they worked were corporations, the tariff, l-bo stock market, special privileges in railway rates, corrupted legislatures, controlled banks, and tho rest of tho machinery of the new economic -ago. Money was power, and control over all those tools grew rapidly with the increasing wealth and power of individuals, groups or industries. Corruption Not Offensive

'The ordinary American had never been very much offended by corruption. In a land that w-as believed to bo overflowing with opportunity, and in which tho under dog of one day might become top dog of the next; in which the scale of values had to a considerable extent become materialised, and ethical concorpts of business blurred, no one cared much whether or not someone else “got away” with something shady, provided that the field of opportunity was still left open. Apart, from the corruption, the courts, which were the last resort of the people, seemed to be wholly on the side of the capitalistic few. In case after case they had been building up a mass of decisions which had no regard to any interest of the nation except the strictest, construction of the rights of property. Adams pointed out that in New York they had prevented any effort to reform

the sweating of labour in. homes, and held up tenement house improvement for 20 years. They had in various States prevented enactments dealing ■with hours of labour. It had made the anti-trust laws almost void by its rulings. Competition Eliminated. Bigger and bigger combinations and consolidations occurred. The United States Steel Coloration was tho biggost amongst the now economic monsters. A conservative estimate in the period showed that 5300 formerly distinct plants had been combined into 318 trusts with a capital of 7,246,000,000 dollars, and. another estimate placed the capital off a large number of combinations at over twenty billion, dollars. Whilst these combinations were being effected in the industrial world, similar ones, eliminating competition, were going forward in railroads. Yet more menacing was the concentration of power preceeding in the banking world, which even the conservative capitalistic Wall Street Journal described,as “not merely a normal growth, but concentration that comes from combination, consolidation, and othor methods employed to secure monopolistic power. Not only this, but this concentration has not been 'along the lines of commercial banking. The great banks of concentration are in close alliance with financial in terests tim-ately connected with, promotion of immense enterprises, many off them being largely speculative.” It added that the banking power was passing to tho control of men who were less interested in legitimate banking than in stock promotion, watering and manipulation. Diacu-ssion of how tho extremely small groups of men in control off these great masses of capital used, and misused, their powers aud how they contributed to the nation’s great difficulties must bo left for another article.