The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-05-04
OF THE CATTLE MEN
Senators Vest and Plumb Talk Bitterly
of What They Call a Seattle Syndicate
Which They Claim Fixes the Price Of Live
Stock and Defrauds Growers Of Millions OF
MOney-Tbe Tariff Debate in the House.


ported and placed on the calendar. unless other
wise noted, were the following:
The Senate pill TO retire certain disabled ON
.ers of the army; the House bill authorizing
the President to retire Alfred Pleasanton. with
rank of colonel: the House bill! authorizing the
construction of railroad bridges across Trail
creek at Michigan City. Ind; House bill for
promotion of army officers after twenty years
continuous service in one grade Ia minority dis
seutingl the Senate bill granting TO the Oregon
Railway & Nsvigation Company the right OF
way through the Nez Perces Indian reservation;
the House bill to restore to the public domain
part OF the Utah valley Indian reservation in
Utah.
Mr.. Stewart introduced bill TO execute the
stipulations Of the new Chinese treaty. which
was referred. Il absolutely prohibits. after
ninety days from its passage, the entry of
Chinese isborers or laborers Of Chinese descent,
wherever they may have been born, excepting
only such ~ were. at the date Of the treaty, or
shall be ninety days after the passage of the act
in the United States who may leave the coun-
try, having right to return 10 pursuance Of the
terms Of the treaty. and such other Chinese la
borers a. may enter the country for transit
across the United States The last mentioned
class are permitted to enter only at the ports Of
San Diego. San Francisco, Portland. Ore. Bos-
ton, New York and New Orleans. 1t 10 made
misdsmeanor. punishable by fine aud imprison-
ment, for the master Of . vessel to bring IN any
Chinese laborer not lawfully entitled to entry.
The Secretary of the Treasury is empowered to
make such regulations rs he may see fit TO Sc
cure the rights of Chinese persons named in
Articles and 3 Of the treaty, and to protect the
United States against the coming and transit Of
persons not entitled to the benefit OF saic arti-
cles. He is authorized to prescribe the form OF
the certificates to DO issued and TO require the
deposit of the photograph of the person TO
Who % the certificate 10 issued. False PRESERVATION
of the individual named In a certificate is made
Punishable by not more than 81, 900 fine or FIVE
years Imprisonment Chinese persons found
unlaw in the United States may be arrested.
country whence they came. the expense of she
proceedings being chareeable against the parties
who brought them in. Diplomatic and other of
fcers Of the Chinese government are exempted
from the act. State courts are prohibited from
admitting Chinese TO citizenship.
The Senate then resumed consideration of the
railroad Immigrant forfeiture bill, the question
being on the amendment offered yesterday by
Mr. Hoar. Mr. Hoar withdrew his amendment.
with the sxplsnstion that Mr. Palmer desired
20 offer one which would accomplish what he
[Mr. Hoarl intended to accomplish and some
thing else
Mr. Palmer thsrsupon offered an amendment
providing that the act shall not be construed to
prejudice any right of the Portage Lake Canal
Company, or the Ontonagon 81 Brule River
railroad, anybody claiming under them, TO
apply hereafter TO the courts or to Congress for
any legal or equitable relief to which they may
now be .ntitlsd. nor to prejudice any right OF
forfeiture or recovery Of the United States Ia
respect Of any of the lands claimed by such
companies. nor to prejudice the right of any
person claiming adversely to said companies or
their assigns.
After . long discussion. participated in by
Senator's Spooner. Berry, Palmer. Dolph. Teller
and Call, the bill went over without action on
the ameudment. and will be taken up to-mor-
row at the close of the morning business.
The Senate then resumed consideration of the
bill for the sstablishm ent OF q bureau OF animal
industry and 70 facilitate the expectation Of live
stock and their products
Mr.. Palmer addressed the Senate in support Of
the bill, and had read various communications
Ito show the animus Of the opposition to the
bill" which was. be said, 'smachiLs work right
through The general idea conveyed was that
the opposition came from the existing bureau of
animal industry. In conclusion. be expressed
the hope that the bill would pass II il did not,
he would have the satisfaction OF having &C
Quilted himself of his duty:
Mr.. Vest said that IL one-tenth Of what was
stated Ia the correspondence which had just
been read was true. the Commissioner of Ae1i
culture should be hurled out of official lifs dill
Rraced and dishonored. If the Commissioners
had used his Official position TO defeat ad-
vance legislation, he was unworthy to be q
that great department. But he Mr.. Vest
did not believe these statements. He
had been diligently searching for the truth
all throush tn: labyrinth Of speeche:
support the bill He proceeded to speak Of what
he called the cattle syndicate" aud said that
the people were helpless and within its power.
IL was the most terrible tyranny ever exercised
There were five men or firms in the city of Chi
cago which regulated the price of cattle every
day. They met every night and fixed the price
for next day. The Missouri farmer who found
from the market quotations that cattle were
and 81 cents . pound. shipped his cattle to Chi
cago, but whom he got there he found that the
syndicate had put beef down to and q cents He
could not store his CATTLE as they would be
diminished every day in weight and quality. and
30 he was coercsd to sell. He went to an agent
OF Armour's and was told that the price was 81
cents; he went TO another Armour AGENT and got
the same answer. He was met all over the city
with the unvarying response. ''23 cents pound. "
and be had TO take It So that these men owned
the cattle -raisers property and confscated it as
IL they possessed the right TO take 1t from his
farm without paying him one cent Talk, "
said Mr. Vest, "about trusts. talk about pools;
the cattle pool Of Chicago is the most infamous
tyranny that ever existed in the United States.
They have got their collar on the cattle pro-
ducsrs of the entire West. And / know no
remedy for 10. The statesman who would in
vent the remedy would deserve o monument
more enduring than the Capitol. He would
OF fhe Northwest and on the cattlsraisers of
the country
Mr. Plumb had also something to ssy on the
same subject In his opinion the worst combi-
nation of the country was the combination of
beef and pork packers having its headquarters
ia Chicago. There was no trust or eombnation
the Standard Oil Trust the sugar trust. the
copper trust, or any other trust. that had so
powerful or so baneful an influence as that
combination. For years the prices of cattle to
ad baSn 0ofu0 down. They had
gone down, he thought. 80 DER cent. In III Q
same time the prices of meat TO the consume E
had gone up. aud every single dollar OF the diff
ference had gone into the pockets of tn at com BIZ
nation. So perfect was their control that they
knew absolutely not only how many
cattle were TO arrive each day in Chi
cage. hut over what roads they were to come,
where they had been shipped from. their char
actsr and the men Who shipped them. When
the cattle reached Chicago the syndicate's rep
resentatiys was sent to view them to put price
upon them; and that was the price at which
they had to be sold unless il was made lower.
No cattle commission man dared TO set I'D for
himself IN Chicago. His occupation would be
imDediat eiy gone. Under the operation of this
trust tie prices Of cattle had declined unneces-
sariiy and destructively. 1t WAS safe to say
that on every steer of three years old aud MP
wards raised west of the Mississippi river dur
Ing the past five years. the market value had
bean, by this CONT donation. reduced not less
than $40 a head. The damage TO the State OF
Kansas alone during that period OF time had
been more than $40, 600. 900; and the wealth OF
the syndicate had grown proportionatsly. They
had . committee here now having in their peck