The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-11-25
MONOPOLY.

Olys Pal duUAICdl S5 GQ0 SCaC6men
may seem at first sight, that ar
productive of a great deal of good
and especially to those that ar
most deserving of it. To give
familiar illustration, we may refe
to dealers in grain, provisions, etc
When the price of grain is low, a.
1t always is comparatively at har-
vest time, these monopolists come
forward and make extensive pur
chases, which they have no inten.
ton Of turning over Immediately
but which they intend to hoard w
until time of scarcity, so that they
can command a higher figure, and
thus make a good profit on their
investment. This, to be sure, is
done not with any intention of
benefting the farmer, but solely fer
the profit Of the dealer. However.
by buying up grain at the time it is
most plentiful, he creates demand
for the product, which consequently
either rises in price, or, at least, does
not fall, and thus proves of great
advantage to the producer, whose
limited means compels him to sell
IN order to meet his enga gements.
There are, indeed, too many farm
ers in this condition. The threshing
is hardly over before they load I'D
and start for market, compelled to
take whatever price the dealer may
see ut to give. Now, as prices are
thus kept up in the season when.
otherwise,they would be lew, 80 they
are kept down when they should be
high, for the monopolist, after hav-
ing waited until prices have risen
sufficiently, puts his grain upon the
market and consequently by in>
creasing the supply, without at the
same time increasing the demand
keeps the prices down, and thus we
see that while he benefits the pro-
Queer at one season of the year, he
also benefits the consumer at
another, and brings about as near
as possible an equilibrium in prices.
Anything that will tend to avoid
those ups and downs in prices, will
likewise have tendency to estab-
lish business on a fiTmer ard more
lasting LASTS, and thus put stop at
least in measure, to that specula-
tive spirit that breaks out every
few years and seems to spread with
the rspidity and fatality of an cpl
demic, only it lasts longer. If we
can but strike the golden mean
that philosophers so often speak of,
and modern civilization is Ger
tainly drifting. though slowly, in
that direction, the sum of human
will certainly be much
greater than it is at present. 1t is
true the manipulation realizes a
handsome profit from his sales, |
sometimes, but not always. He runs
risks, and anyone who does 80, ex-
poets corresponding increase in |
returns in order to reimburse him.
self one season for the losses or too |
small profits of another less favor
able season. Again no ole will |
argue that he should not receive a
fair interest on the capital invested,
else what use to him will his capital
be unless he can obtain some ad-
from having denied himself
The pleasure of using it as he ac-
CURED it? Nothing then can be
more just than the profit which re.
wards him for the service he does
the producer at one time, and the
consumer at another.
a monopoly Of this kind is one
10 which but small capital is neces-
,ary, and consequently many may
engage in the business, and thus
prevent any one from making too
arge gains. Again as there are SO
many and many more may rise up
1t any time, coalition is scarcely
possible, at least none that might
prove very disastrous. But there
Ire monopolies quite different from
.hese, such for instance as railroad,
GOAL and rock companies. In the
Ease of railroads, vast amount of
capital is necessary to their con-
SO much so that even the
most wealthy men do not undertake
them alone, but several must unite
heir means to that purpose, so that
comranies of this kind can rot be