t in actual injury to the public;
and anti-competitive contracts, to avert personal ruin, may be
perfectly reasonable. It is only when such contracts are publicly
oppressive that they become unreasonable, and are condemned as
against public policy."

This is probably the best statement of the present status of the common
law upon this subject now extant. But what a path to endless litigation
does it open! Who shall draw the line where a contract to restrain
competition ceases to be beneficial and lawful, and becomes an injury to
the public welfare? Must this be left to judge and jury? If so, the
responsibilities of our already overburdened Courts are vastly
increased.

In contrast with such a policy as this, the plan before presented
certainly promises definiteness in the place of uncertainty; and treats
all contracts in restraint of competition with impartiality. It is
believed that the effect of its enforcement would be a great reduction
in the tax now levied on us by monopolies.

There is yet one way, however, in which all these monopolies that we
have found it so difficult to devise a plan to deal with--the
manufacturers' trusts--may be quickly and certainly reduced. Our heavy
tariff on imported goods, by protecting manufacturers from foreign
competition, and thus reducing the number of possible competitors, has
undeniably been a chief reason why trusts have appeared and grown
wealthy in this country before any other. The author has purposely
refrained, as far as possible, from reference to the relation of the
tariff to monopolies; for the question has been so hotly fought over,
and the real facts concerning it have been so garbled and distorted,
that people are not yet ready to consider it in an unprejudiced way.
This much, however, no one can gainsay. We hold in our hands the means
to at any time reduce the prices and profits of practically all our
monopolies in manufacturing to a reasonable basis, by simply cutting
down the duty on the products of foreign manufactories. Now, if after
our plan just described is in force, the managers of any monopoly choose
to be so reckless as to raise its prices to a point where its published
reports will show it to be making enormous profits, thus tempting new
competitors to enter the field and breeding public hostility, all honest
protectionists and free-traders will be quite apt to unite in a demand
that the "protection" under which this monopoly is perm