The Leavenworth weekly times., 1879-03-06
TWeekGp Gimss
THURSDAY MARCH c. 1872.
TIE liza. coat HEoS-
APaIK

OPOLY.
Actual facts, actual figures, with the
names Of coal consumers, will bring forcI-
bly, home TO the people of Leavenworth the
enormity Of the wrong which the coal mon-
opoly works, particularly, against our
manufacturing interests, and generally
sgsinst every industrisl interest in the
county Of Leavenworth.
For instance, II. ID. Rush, proprietor OF
the Leavenworth Touring mills, says be
uses about 200 bushels OF coal per day
3i3 working days in the year, give total
Of 62,6O0 bushels OF coal used per aunum,
for witch be paws at the mine y oents per
hu-h"i, ar S7,5l2 90 per snnum This
sam coal ia sold 20 Kansas City and Atch-
iSon manufacturers AT oeats per bushel.
la round figures Mr.. Rush pays s., ,5l2.O0
Te- annum FOR 60 COO bushels of coal at the
mines, which is sold to Atchison and Kan
sss City manufacturers for 81 .S82 90, or in
other words, Mr.. Rush-because his mill is
located in the city Of Leavenworth. and
- - Se-1N i4c
his proportion of the $1,000 subsidy to
open the Leavenworth mine,-is forced by
the avsrice OF the coal company to pay
s., l3O 90 per annum more for 62,GOO BUSH
els than is paid by purchasers from Atchi-
son and Kansas City.
In plain language, Mr.. Rush ia forced bv
this coal monopoly 10 pay bonus OF
$3.50 90 per annum mare for his coal than
he would have to pay were his mill located
at Atchiaon or Ksnsas City.
Or still palmer statement would be.
that Mr.. Rush is forced to pay the coal
monopoly a royalty of three Thousand one
hundred and thirty dollars per aunum for
the privilege of running his mill in our
city, which he could avoid by moving hi-
mill to Atchison or Kansas City.
Assuming this the coal company mines
5000 bushels Of coal per day, and that 4. 900
bushels per day is con=umed in Ieaven-
worth, we have total of > .504 600 bushels |
OF coal mined per snnum, of which ! .2J2 OOO
bushels IL consumed in Leavenworth.
We say assuming that to be true-for We |
have no reliable data furnishei-and not
taking into account the coal that is retailed |
at IA cents per bushel, the manufacturers,
merchants and laboring men of Lelven- |
worth pay this monstrous monopoly the |
enormous sum Of $4,000 per annum |
more than would be charged Aichison or |
Kansas City FOR the same amount of coal |
These figures are astounding, and yet they |
Set forth nothing but the simple truth, a.
any reader can.prove TO his own satisfactio n |
by making the necessary inquiries. The \
policy pursued by the coal company Is out
rsgeous, not only in view of the enormous
tax it leyies upon our people by its unjust |
discrimination against us, but by the far |
greater irjury il works TO Us in utterly de-
stroying our manufacturing prospects, for
with these facts staring US in the face. We
cannot make sny pretention to competing
with more favored points.
The argument usually made use Of in de-
fence OF such policy as that pursued by
the Leavenworth coal compsny-that the
organization incurred great risks of loss
IN inauguratiDg its enterprise and
is entitled to enormous profit
does not hold good in this case, for
the men who now own and control the cor
poration are not the men who risked tbsir
time and money in what seemed
to be the uncertain work of sinking the
shaft, but are men who took advantage of
the necessities of tie public spirited citi-
zens who inaugurated the enterprise, or
'froze" them out, after the undertaking
had passed the stages Of uncertainty, and
had become an assured SUCCESS.
But even if they were the same men, and
'ccre entitled to enormous profits in consid-
GRAFTON 1.-THE great risks they incurred, there
ia no just reason why the people of Leaven-
worth, who have been the company best
and have aided it by a liberal
subsidy, should be the only ones required
to pay the extortionate prices, while the
people Of all other communities are fur
nished with coal at reasonable rates.
The case is Sithout solitary mitigating
The company have the pow
Rr and they use it. That's all there is to be
said. That's the only reason to be given
why Leayenworth manufacturers are
charged twelve cents, snd Leaveuworth
families fourteen cents while Kansas City
Or Atchison buyers are furnished with the
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