TRUST REGULATION FAVORED

Professor E. Dana Durand, of the University of Minnesota spoke in Emerson D last night on the general subject "What Shall We do with the Trusts?"

After defining the terms "trust" and "pool" Professor Durand stated that there were three main plans for dealing with these two forms of combination. The first of these, "laissez faire," he defined as the policy of having the government prohibit the trusts from using all monopolies, price discriminations and other unfair competitive methods, but otherwise to let them continue as they are. This policy is dangerous, for the growth in power of many of the trusts has not been due to any of these things, but rather to the practice of buying up their competitors and the willingness of these competitors for such an amalgamation. This is especially true in the case of the Tobacco Trust, whose large capital has enabled it to maintain, for a time at least, prices that are far above the competitive level.

Regulation of the trusts is the second method and this Professor Durand compared with what, to him, is the only safe policy, prohibition. The term "regulation" means price regulation. If we do this, it is said, the "teeth of the Trusts will be pulled." Experience shows that large corporations like the Standard Oil have been able to maintain unfair competitive prices. If prices were regulated by the Government the power of the Trusts would be broken.

Pools, which Professor Durand defined as agreements in the scale of prices and other commercial regulations between two or more corporations, are, like the Trusts, worthy of serious thought. Although, by reason of their loose organization, they are less able to maintain monopolies and other unfair competitive methods, experience shows that the public, as a rule, has been forced to pay excessive prices for those articles on which the pools have operated.

Professor Durand spoke particularly on the Standard Oil, Sugar, Steel, and Tobacco Trusts which he declared had for some time maintained prices far above the general average, successfully withstanding all the hostile attempts of rival corporations. It was only when the Government took a hand in the matter that the power of these Trusts began to diminish. Combination might be prevented but only Government regulation or prohibition can be a safe guard against monopoly.