ion is made merely to promote production or to create
guilds for friendly intercourse between persons engaged in a common
pursuit, it is beneficial, but such is not the object of the great
combinations in the United States. They are organized to prevent
competition and to advance prices and profits. Usually the capital
of several corporations, often of different states, is combined
into a single corporation, and sometimes this is placed under the
control of one man. The power of this combination is used to
prevent and destroy all competition, and in many cases this has
been successful, which has resulted in enormous fortunes and
sometimes a large advance in prices to the consumer. This law may
not be sufficient to control and prevent such combinations, but,
if not, the evil produced by them will lead to effective legislation.
I know of no object of greater importance to the people. I hope
the courts of the United States and of the several states, will
deal with these combinations so as to prevent and destroy them.

On the 13th of May, 1890, I was drawn into a casual debate with
Mr. Eustis, of Louisiana, which extended to others, on the relations
of the north and south, or, rather, between Union and Confederate
soldiers. The subject before the Senate was a bill to aid the
illiterate in obtaining a common school education. The chief
benefit of the measure would have inured to the south, especially
to the negroes of the south. Mr. Eustis complained of the 15th
amendment to the constitution. I explained to him that this
amendment would never have been adopted but for the action of the
south in depriving the enfranchised voter, not only of his rights
of citizenship, but of the ordinary rights of humanity. I gave
the history of the reconstruction acts, the first of which was
framed by a committee of which I was chairman. It was based upon
the restoration of the southern states to all the rights and
privileges they enjoyed before the war, subject to such changes as
were made necessary by the abolition of slavery as the result of
the war. There was then no feeling of hostility to the people of
the south. I had heard at that time no expression of opinion except
of kindness to them. There was a universal appreciation of the
fact that while they were wrong--radically wrong, as we thought,
in waging a useless and bloody war against the Union of this country
--yet they were honest in their convictions, they believed t