WhenIleftthePresidencyIfinishedsevenandahalfyearsofadministration，duringwhichnotoneshothadbeenfiredagainstaforeignfoe。Wewereatabsolutepeace，andtherewasnonationintheworldwithwhomawarcloudthreatened，nonationintheworldwhomwehadwronged，orfromwhomwehadanythingtofear。Thecruiseofthebattlefleetwasnottheleastofthecauseswhichensuredsopeacefulanoutlook。
Whenthefleetreturnedafteritssixteenmonths’voyagearoundtheworldIwentdowntoHamptonRoadstogreetit。ThedaywasWashington’sBirthday，February22，1907。Literallyontheminutethehomingbattlecraftcameintoview。OntheflagshipoftheAdmiralI
spoketotheofficersandenlistedmen，asfollows：
“AdmiralSperry，OfficersandMenoftheBattleFleet：
“Overayearhaspassedsinceyousteamedoutofthisharbor，andovertheworld’srim，andthismorningtheheartsofallwhosawyouthrilledwithprideasthehullsofthemightywarshipsliftedabovethehorizon。YouhavebeenintheNorthernandtheSouthernHemispheres；fourtimesyouhavecrossedtheline；youhavesteamedthroughallthegreatoceans；youhavetouchedthecoastofeverycontinent。Everyourgeneralcoursehasbeenwestward；
andnowyoucomebacktotheportfromwhichyousetsail。Thisisthefirstbattlefleetthathasevercircumnavigatedtheglobe。
Thosewhoperformthefeatagaincanbutfollowinyourfootsteps。
“ThelittletorpedoflotillawentwithyouaroundSouthAmerica，throughtheStraitsofMagellan，toourownPacificCoast。Thearmoredcruisersquadronmetyou，andleftyouagain，whenyouwerehalfwayroundtheworld。Youhavefalsifiedeverypredictionoftheprophetsoffailure。Inallyourlongcruisenotanaccidentworthyofmentionhashappenedtoasinglebattleship，noryettothecruisersortorpedoboats。Youleftthiscoastinahighstateofbattleefficiency，andyoureturnwithyourefficiencyincreased；betterpreparedthanwhenyouleft，notonlyinpersonnelbuteveninmaterial。Duringyourworldcruiseyouhavetakenyourregulargunnerypractice，andskilledthoughyouwerebeforewiththeguns，youhavegrownmoreskilfulstill；andthroughpracticeyouhaveimprovedinbattletactics，thoughherethereismoreroomforimprovementthaninyourgunnery。
Incidentally，IsupposeIneedhardlysaythatonemeasureofyourfitnessmustbeyourclearrecognitionoftheneedalwayssteadilytostrivetorenderyourselvesmorefit；ifyouevergrowtothinkthatyouarefitenough，youcanmakeupyourmindsthatfromthatmomentyouwillbegintogobackward。
“Asawar-machine，thefleetcomesbackinbettershapethanitwentout。Inaddition，you，theofficersandmenofthisformidablefightingforce，haveshownyourselvesthebestofallpossibleambassadorsandheraldsofpeace。Whereveryouhavelandedyouhaveborneyourselvessoastomakeusathomeproudofbeingyourcountrymen。Youhaveshownthatthebesttypeoffightingmanoftheseaknowshowtoappeartotheutmostpossibleadvantagewhenhisbusinessistobehavehimselfonshore，andtomakeagoodimpressioninaforeignland。Weareproudofalltheshipsandallthemeninthiswholefleet，andwewelcomeyouhometothecountrywhosegoodreputeamongnationshasbeenraisedbywhatyouhavedone。”
APPENDIXA
THETRUSTS，THEPEOPLE，ANDTHESQUAREDEAL
[WrittenwhenMr。Taft’sadministrationbroughtsuittodissolvethesteelcorporation，oneofthegroundsforthesuitbeingtheacquisitionbytheCorporationoftheTennesseeCoalandIronCompany；
thisactionwastaken，withmyacquiescence，whileIwasPresident，andwhileMr。Taftwasamemberofmycabinet；atthetimeheneverprotestedagainst，andasfarasIknewapprovedofmyactioninthiscase，asintheHarvesterTrustcase，andallsimilarcases。]
ThesuitagainsttheSteelTrustbytheGovernmenthasbroughtvividlybeforeourpeopletheneedofreducingtoorderourchaoticGovernmentpolicyasregardsbusiness。AsPresident，inMessagestoCongressI
repeatedlycalledtheattentionofthatbodyandofthepublictotheinadequacyoftheAnti-TrustLawbyitselftomeetbusinessconditionsandsecurejusticetothepeople，andtothefurtherfactthatitmight，ifleftunsupplementedbyadditionallegislation，workmischief，withnocompensatingadvantage；andIurgedasstronglyasI
knewhowthatthepolicyfollowedwithrelationtorailwaysinconnectionwiththeInter-StateCommerceLawshouldbefollowedbytheNationalGovernmentasregardsallgreatbusinessconcerns；andthereforethat，asafirststep，thepowersoftheBureauofCorporationsshouldbegreatlyenlarged，orelsethatthereshouldbecreatedaGovernmentalboardorcommission，withpowerssomewhatsimilartothoseoftheInter-StateCommerceCommission，butcoveringthewholefieldofinter-Statebusiness，exclusiveoftransportationwhichshould，bylaw，bekeptwhollyseparatefromordinaryindustrialbusiness，allcommonownershipoftheindustryandtherailwaybeingforbidden。IntheendIhavealwaysbelievedthatitwouldalsobenecessarytogivetheNationalGovernmentcompletepowerovertheorganizationandcapitalizationofallbusinessconcernsengagedininter-Statecommerce。
AmemberofmyCabinetwithwhom，evenmorethanwiththevariousAttorneys-General，Iwentovereverydetailofthetrustsituation，wastheonetimeSecretaryoftheInterior，Mr。JamesR。Garfield。HewritesmeasfollowsconcerningthesuitagainsttheSteelCorporation：
“NothingappearedbeforetheHouseCommitteethatmademebelieveweweredeceivedbyJudgeGary。
“This，Ithink，isacasethatshowsclearlythedifferencebetweendestructivelitigationandconstructivelegislation。IhavenotyetseenafullcopyoftheGovernment’spetition，butourpapersgivenothingthatindicatesanykindofunfairordishonestcompetitionsuchasexistedinboththeStandardOilandTobaccoCases。AsIunderstandit，thecompetitorsoftheSteelCompanyhavesteadilyincreasedinstrengthduringthelastsixorsevenyears。Furthermore，thepercentofthebusinessdonebytheSteelCorporationhasdecreasedduringthattime。Asyouwillremember，atourfirstconferencewithJudgeGary，theJudgestatedthatitwasthedesireandpurposeoftheCompanytoconformtowhattheGovernmentwished，itbeingthepurposeoftheCompanyabsolutelytoobeythelawbothinspiritandletter。ThroughoutthetimethatIhadchargeoftheinvestigation，andwhilewewereinWashington，IdonotknowofasingleinstancewheretheSteelCompanyrefusedanyinformationrequested；but，onthecontrary，aidedineverypossiblewayourinvestigation。
“ThepositionnowtakenbytheGovernmentisabsolutelydestructiveoflegitimatebusiness，becausetheyoutlinenoruleofconductforbusinessofanymagnitude。Itisabsurdtosaythatthecourtscanlaydownsuchrules。Themostthecourtscandoistofindaslegalorillegaltheparticulartransactionsbroughtbeforethem。
Hence，afteryearsoftediouslitigationtherewouldbenoclear-
cutruleforfutureaction。Thismethodofprocedureisdealingwiththedevice，nottheresult，anddrivesbusinesstotheelaborationofcleverdevices，eachofwhichmustbetestedinthecourts。
“Ihaveyettofindabettermethodofdealingwiththeanti-trustsituationthanthatsuggestedbythebillwhichweagreeduponinthelastdaysofyourAdministration。Thatbillshouldbeusedasabasisforlegislation，andtherecouldbeincorporateduponitwhatevermaybedeterminedwiseregardingthedirectcontrolandsupervisionoftheNationalGovernment，eitherthroughacommissionsimilartotheInter-StateCommerceCommissionorotherwise。”
Beforetakingupthematterinitslargeaspect，IwishtosayonewordastoonefeatureoftheGovernmentsuitagainsttheSteelCorporation。OneofthegroundsforthesuitistheacquisitionbytheSteelCorporationoftheTennesseeCoalandIronCompany；andithasbeenalleged，ontheauthorityoftheGovernmentofficialsengagedincarryingonthesuit，thatasregardsthistransactionIwasmisledbytherepresentativesoftheSteelCorporation，andthatthefactswerenotaccuratelyortruthfullylaidbeforeme。Thisstatementisnotcorrect。IbelievedatthetimethatthefactsinthecasewereasrepresentedtomeonbehalfoftheSteelCorporation，andmyfurtherknowledgehasconvincedmethatthiswastrue。IbelievedatthetimethattherepresentativesoftheSteelCorporationtoldmethetruthastothechangethatwouldbeworkedinthepercentageofthebusinesswhichtheproposedacquisitionwouldgivetheSteelCorporation，andfurtherinquiryhasconvincedmethattheydidso。Iwasnotmisled。
TherepresentativesoftheSteelCorporationtoldmethetruthastowhattheeffectoftheactionatthattimewouldbe，andanystatementthatIwasmisledorthattherepresentativesoftheSteelCorporationdidnotthustellmethetruthastothefactsofthecaseisitselfnotinaccordancewiththetruth。In/TheOutlook/ofAugust19lastI
gaveinfullthestatementIhadmadetotheInvestigatingCommitteeoftheHouseofRepresentativesonthismatter。Thatstatementisaccurate，andIreaffirmeverythingIthereinsaid，notonlyastowhatoccurred，butalsoastomybeliefinthewisdomandproprietyofmyaction——indeed，theactionnotmerelywaswiseandproper，butitwouldhavebeenacalamityfromeverystandpointhadIfailedtotakeit。Onpage137oftheprintedreportofthetestimonybeforetheCommitteewillbefoundJudgeGary’saccountofthemeetingbetweenhimselfandMr。FrickandMr。Rootandmyself。Thisaccountstatesthefactsaccurately。IthasbeenallegedthatthepurchasebytheSteelCorporationofthepropertyoftheTennesseeCoalandIronCompanygavetheSteelCorporationpracticallyamonopolyoftheSouthernironores——thatis，oftheironoressouthofthePotomacandtheOhio。Myinformation，whichIhaveeveryreasontobelieveisaccurateandnotsuccessfullytobechallenged，isthat，oftheseSouthernironorestheSteelCorporationhas，includingthepropertygainedfromtheTennesseeCoalandIronCompany，lessthan20percent——perhapsnotover16percent。ThisisaverymuchsmallerpercentagethanthepercentageitholdsoftheLakeSuperiorores，whichevenafterthesurrenderoftheHillleasewillbeslightlyover50percent。
Accordingtomyview，therefore，andunless——whichIdonotbelievepossible——thesefigurescanbesuccessfullychallenged，theacquisitionoftheTennesseeCoalandIronCompany’soresinnowaychangedthesituationasregardsmakingtheSteelCorporationamonopoly。[*]TheshowingastothepercentageofproductionofallkindsofsteelingotsandsteelcastingsintheUnitedStatesbytheSteelCorporationandbyallothermanufacturersrespectivelymakesanevenstrongercase。ItmakesthecaseevenstrongerthanIputitinmytestimonybeforetheInvestigatingCommittee，forIwasscrupulouslycarefultomakestatementsthaterred，ifatall，againstmyownposition。Itappearsfromthefiguresofproductionthatin1901theSteelCorporationhadtoitscreditnearly66percentofthetotalproductionasagainstalittleover34percentbyallothersteelmanufacturers。Thepercentagethenshranksteadily，untilin1906，theyearbeforetheacquisitionoftheTennesseeCoalandIronproperties，thepercentagewasalittleunder58percent。Inspiteoftheacquisitionoftheseproperties，thefollowingyear，1907，thetotalpercentageshrankslightly，andthisshrinkinghascontinueduntilin1910thetotalpercentageoftheSteelCorporationisbutalittleover54percent，andthepercentagebyallothersteelmanufacturersbutafractionlessthan46percent。Ofthe543/10percentproducedbytheSteelCorporation19/10percentisproducedbytheformerTennesseeCoalandIronCompany。Inotherwords，thesefiguresshowthattheacquisitionoftheTennesseeCoalandIronCompanydidnotintheslightestdegreechangethesituation，andthatduringthetenyearswhichincludetheacquisitionofthesepropertiesbytheSteelCorporationthepercentageoftotaloutputofsteelmanufacturersinthiscountrybytheSteelCorporationhasshrunkfromnearly66percenttobutatrifleover54percent。Idonotbelievethatthesefigurescanbesuccessfullycontroverted，andifnotsuccessfullycontrovertedtheyshowclearlynotonlythattheacquisitionoftheTennesseeCoalandIronpropertieswroughtnochangeinthestatusoftheSteelCorporation，butthattheSteelCorporationduringthedecadehassteadilylost，insteadofgained，inmonopolisticcharacter。
[*]MyownbeliefisthatourNationshouldlongagohaveadoptedthepolicyofmerelyleasingforatermofyearsmineral-bearingland；
butitisthefaultofusourselves，ofthepeople，notoftheSteelCorporation，thatthispolicyhasnotbeenadopted。
Somuchforthefactsinthisparticularcase。Nowforthegeneralsubject。WhenmyAdministrationtookoffice，Ifound，notonlythattherehadbeenlittlerealenforcementoftheAnti-TrustLawandbutlittlemoreeffectiveenforcementoftheInter-StateCommerceLaw，butalsothatthedecisionsweresochaoticandthelawsthemselvessovaguelydrawn，oratleastinterpretedinsuchwidelyvaryingfashions，thatthebiggestbusinessmentendedtotreatbothlawsasdeadletters。TheseriesofactionsbywhichwesucceededinmakingtheInter-StateCommerceLawanefficientandmostusefulinstrumentinregulatingthetransportationofthecountryandexactingjusticefromthebigrailwayswithoutdoingtheminjustice——while，indeed，onthecontrary，securingthemagainstinjustice——neednothereberelated。TheAnti-TrustLawitwasalsonecessarytoenforceasithadneverhithertobeenenforced；bothbecauseitwasonthestatute-booksandbecauseitwasimperativetoteachthemastersofthebiggestcorporationsinthelandthattheywerenot，andwouldnotbepermittedtoregardthemselvesas，abovethelaw。Moreover，wherethecombinationhasreallybeenguiltyofmisconductthelawservesausefulpurpose，andinsuchcasesasthoseoftheStandardOilandTobaccoTrusts，ifeffectivelyenforced，thelawconfersarealandgreatgood。