Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-03-30
"a FARKERs TRUST"

a surprise to any man OF ordinary inteiii
gence. There is not patriotic citizel
in the United States who has looket
with uncopcern on the growth of hi
"srust" principle, and the opinion IL
daily crystallizipg into conviction tina
this government must destroy trusts ol
law or, through law, the trusts vii
govern If not destroy the government.
The organization of labor WIGS tbt
initial protest sgainst the organization o.
capital, and this movement reported
from Ksnsas is the initial protest Of The
consumer against the trust. which Is the
most compact form of monopoly. TIL
GAZETTE doubts the feasibility of "a
Farmers Trust" but the success or failure
of the effort has naught to do with the
patent fact that "trusts" must go. Al
the dsily lsborer was the first to feel The
grinding Of capital organized for diyi-
demos only, so consumers are the frss &c
feel the price appreciated by "trusts" &c
produce the required pronss on invest
ment.
II this movement OF ths farmers will
result in focsliLing public sttention to
the danger Of "trusts," s grea. good to
the whole country will be accomplished
Early in the present month the general
laws committee Of the New York Legisls-
ture submitted TO the Senate Of tina!
state report Of Its Investigations OF
trusts. The conclusions Of that report
are summarized as follows: Durirg the
investigation the formation, manage
ment snd effect of the following conbi-
nations. commonly known as trusts, were
made the chief subject OF inquiry; Sugar,
milk, rubber, cottonseed oil, envelopes.
elevators, oil cloth, the Standard
Oil, butchers, the glass trust and the
furniture trust. However different the
influences which gave rise to those COM
binations may be, the main purpose, msu-
sgement and effect Of all upon the public
is the same, to wit: The aggregation OF
capital, the power OF controlling the man
ufscture and output of various necessary
commodities, the acquisition or destruc-
ton Of competitive properties, ell leading
to the fnsl and conclusive purposes Of
annihilatipg competition and enabling the
combinations to Ok the p?ics at which
they would purchase the raw material
from the producer, and at which they
would sell the refined product TO the
consumer.
Ia any event the public at each end OF
the industry, the producer and consumer,
is, and is intended to be, In certain
sense, az the marcy Of the syndicate,
combination or trust.
After considering several OF the trusts
separately, the report says: The pro-
noters of the Standard Oh, suger and
cotton seed oil trusts, all argue that their
combinations do not necessarily have the
effect Of raising the price Of the manu-
featured article to the consumer or Of
lowering the price of the raw product to
the producer, bat that the high price
paid to the producer and the low
price charged to the consumer
depend to great extent upon
the plant controlled By the msrutec-
turer and upon the capital at his COM
mand. and that the larger the capital and
the more extended the field Of its indus
trial operations, the higher will be the
price paid to the producer Of raw mate
rial, and the lower the price charged to
the consumer Of the refined product.
Unfortunately for these theories, f.cts
of recent date do not sustain them.
As applied to the sugar trust, 1t ap-
pears that the price Of sugar has largely
advanced since the trust was formed, and
60 satisfactory exclamation was given Of
the cause Of such advance, aside from the
combination complained Of of IS per cent.
Of the sugar rehners Of the Atlantic COST
to put up prices.
As applied to the cotton seed OIL trust
1t appeared that cotton seed oil had ad-
ysnced, and might at any time he further
advanced, In price, by the will Of the
trust, which, in effect, holds the control
of almost the entire industry OF the eoun-
try.
Tried by this standard, the Standard
Oil monopoly has better esse apparent
~; for the price OF coal or kerosene oil
has diminished steadily since the forms-
ton Of the trust, and 1t Is claimed TO be
now lower in price than ever before. It
Is q well known fact that since the dis
covery Of coal sad kerosene oil there has |
been constant diminution in price to |
the consumer and producer.
But such dimirution in price to the
consumer Is not due to the Standard Oil
Company or trust, but Is attributable to
causes wholly independent Of 1t. the con-
stantly widening field Of oil production
and ever-incressing volume Of crude oil |
put upon the market.
The trust must 90. The welfare Of the
people, individually and collectively, de-
mand this Of the men who are elected itot
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