n6 Presidential Addresses 



as a collective body with these great corporations. 

 Here in Massachusetts you have what I regard as, 

 on the whole, excellent corporation laws. Most of 

 our difficulties would be in a fair way of solution 

 if we had the power to put upon the national statute 

 books, and did put upon them, laws for the nation 

 much like those you have here on the subject of 

 corporations in Massachusetts. So you can see, 

 gentlemen, I am not advocating anything very revo 

 lutionary. I am advocating action to prevent any 

 thing revolutionary. Now, if we can get adequate 

 control by the nation of these great corporations, 

 then we can pass legislation which will give us the 

 power of regulation and supervision over them. 

 If the nation had that power, mind you, I should 

 advocate as strenuously as I know how that the 

 power should be exercised with extreme caution 

 and self-restraint. No good will come from plung 

 ing in. without having looked carefully ahead. The 

 first thing we want is publicity; and I do not mean 

 publicity as a favor by some corporations I mean 

 it as a right from all corporations affected by the 

 law. I want publicity as to the essential facts in 

 which the public has an interest. I want the knowl 

 edge given to the accredited representatives of the 

 people of facts upon which those representatives can 

 if they see fit base their actions later. The publicity 

 itself would cure many evils. The light of day is 

 a great deterrer of wrongdoing. The mere fact of 

 being able to put 9Ut nakedly, and with the certainty 

 that the statements were true, a given condition of 



