New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-02-29
COLONEL BLISS INDIGNANT.
THREATENING TO LEAVE THE COMMITTEE.
TIE SENATE INVESTIGATORS ARE BAFFLED WHEN
THEY TRY TO TAKE THEIR COUNSEL TO AID
THEM IN INSPECTING THE PRIVATE
BOOKS OF THE STANDARD

| Tho committee OF lawyers from the State Senate
who are investigating the combinations known
as trusts yesterday stirred up the Envelope
| Trust ard the Butchers Trusts or rather Colonel
| Bliss did the stirring up, while they solennly
| Imbbed information But before the machinery
of investigation got started on the small trusts
there was q little outstanding account 70 be settled
| with the Standard Oil Trust. IL concerned the
| question whether tho committee should demand
! the production of the records OF the meetings OF
the trustees The heavy legal artillery of the oil
magnatcs were all there, Joseph II Choate A. q.
| Dodd and ex-Congcssman Camp, and with them
was j. G. ArchbOld, the bOylsh-looNng member
Of the trust.
After briefly sizing up this formidable array OF
talent the committee retired for an executive ses-
sion. taking with them their legal advisers Colo
mel Bliss and General Pryor They were all back
/ again before ii o'clock. and tho chairman. soma
tor Arnold said that the committee had declded
to adhere to the precedent established when deal,
ing with the Milk Trust, that all books OF record
calculated to throw light upon the subject under
investigation should be produced Therefore. the
committee would ask that the minutes Of the
meetings Of the Oil Trust trustees be laid before a
subcommittee Of the Senate Committee.
Mr.. Choatc said that he and his associates and
clients would Ike some time TO consider me
matter They didn't believe that tho committee
WAS justified in domandng the books After
rccess he said that be Still OF OPINION that the
committee had no right to inspect tho books but
in view OF the suggestion that q Sun-c' mtDl'Iee
should Inspect them privately they had concluded
to acouinScc Chairman Arnold graciOuSly 40
lnOwlcdged the courtesy and said ma, sun
committee would GO to the Standard Oh mead
quarters and examine the books
corovrr prrss VIII NOT nrDGF.
Senator Arnold Amounted himself and Senator
Tinsn subcommittee to overhaul the booles
Bnt when they got ready TO go another little snag
was encountered. The suggestion was made that
Colonel Bliss should 90 with them. Colonel
Bliss features assumed an expression OF mild out
viruous irdignation
in tho position If looking into tho private record
cf tho Standard Oil Trust in view Of the con-
tngencv that in ny legal career may DE prought
into conflict with them"
But n the subcommittee should want your
opinion as to whether the information obtained
should Ne embodied in their report or not" mildly
suggested Chairman Arnold.
That would no purely y matter for the COM
m ittoo to decide eaid Colonel Bliss say
dls'inctlv that I absolutely decline to GO
Tho expression Of righ'co indignation was IN
tcneifcd and he added with ta1e-it -or-lumpit
air. shall retire from my position rather than
do So" ,,
Thin General Pryor had his say about IT, His
corscirntious scruplos were not GuitH so powerful
as those of Colonel Bliss lie would go with the
suh-oommittce and advise them IF they needed any
advice. hut he wouldn't any account look he,
tycoon tho covers of the book Senator Arnold
decided .lat the subcommittee would content
themselves with the legal knowledge stored in
their own heads ana go alone
prscr' sung rur rvvr' OPE rrrST.
John o. Prebc. Of J Q. Preble & Co, envelope
manufacturers wa the first witness examined
lie produced the agreement dated under which the
Envclope Trust was formed 1t was ar arrangement
between some nine or ten envelope manufacturers
and the Standard Envelope Company, by which
the manufacturers agreed to pay fifteen cents TO
the Standard Envelope Company for every thon-
sand commercial envelopes sold except to those in
the combination. and the Standard EnVclope CON-
pany having contracted with l. ster Wesley OF
Norwich for all envelope machines mannlactureu
hv them in the next five years-not to exceed
twenty-four in any year-agreed to sell the
machines to the manufacturers az its contract
price II the manufacturers didn't take the
machines allotted to them under the agreemSnt
thev were to pay $500 to the Standard Envelope
Company for each machine declined
glass ss"" was. The ' uext witness lie told of
combination among the leading glass importers
Of New York and Boston, under which they agrSodd
20 sell glass at prices lower than speclhed
rates to he determined on from time to time.
II any member OF the association sold glass at a
had to buy the quantity of glass from the asso-
citation at the fixed price. Better prices were
allowed wholesale dealers and large iohbers than
retailers Mr. IIeroy said the object OF the asso-
citation was TO prevent unnecessary competition,
but nevertheless the association was sorey troubled
by outside competition. Since the formation of the
association the price of imported glass had gone
up from FIVE to ten cent. bat he was not certain
that this was due to the association
When the tariff doomed up in the investi CATION
Senator Coggeshall wanted to know what the
effect would be II the tariff were removed from
glass. Somewhat reluctantly the witness adj
mitted that the glass-workers would probably
have to content themselves with lower wages
But Senator Langbe;n introduced the freetrade
view Ivy getting the witness to state that the
price of glass would GO down and the consumers
would profit. The witness said that he was
Mugwump.
TIE PITCHERS TRUST COMES MKT.
The committee next investigated the butchers
trusts This revealed the existence Of triple
combination. On the one hand was an association
among the brokers who did the buying OF animals
to be killed for the New-YorlS market. and two
associations among the butchers, the Sheep and
Lamb Butchers Mutual Benefit Association and
the Calf Butchers Mutual Benefit Association
Under this agreement the butchers agreed to buy
of the brokers, getting a rebate Of 3 IA cents
for every sheep or lamb purchased and cents
for every calf, and to pay the Brokers AssO-
citation Is cents for every sheep lamb pur
chased of individuals firms not members of the
Brokers' Association, and 80 cents for every calf
selves TO sell only TO the members of the Butchers
Associations pay Is cents to that association
for every sheep or lamb sold to outsiders and 80
cents every calf so disposed.
Chairman Arnold made the pleasing announce
mCnt that he had strong assurances" that the
agreement under which the sugar trust was formed
which LAWYER Parsons had refused to surrender,
The committee will wrestle with Of the
smaller trusts again to-day