The intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1887-1891, 1888-02-25
HOW TO REACH THE TRUSTS.


After long delay the people of Chi
cago are about TO move against the ga
monopoly which has been formed il
their city, and their action will attrac
attention throughout the country
because ii Is an attempt to break dow
trust by the enforcement of such law
IS are TO be found in the statute book
every state. AT the request Of Tia,
Citizens Association 9t Chicago, tn
attorney general OF Illinois has CON
lentcd 10 begin quo Warrant0 proceed
ings against the Gas Trust, and tb
officers OF the monopoly will be com
| PEELED to show cause in court why thei
! franchise should not be forfeited, OF
the ground that the powers granted
have been abused and have been exer
ciSed TO the injury OF the people.
Those who form monopoly combina.
! tioms 10 control industries aim to collect
excessive tribute from the people b,
means of the very privileges anC
powers which the people have granted
! TO them. The combination may be in.
cOrpOruted or it may be without lega
standing; il may be Trust or it may
rest upon an agreement it may contro
an industry which is directly affected
by tariff duties or il may operate in u
field where those duties are not felt
but in all cases the tools which mOnop-
olists use are franchises granted by the
people. For example, the Standard
Oh Trust, conspiracy which is not
incorporated, Is monopoly composed
OF numerous companies duly incOrpo-
rated under state laws. When the
charters OF these companies were
granted it was not supposed that they
would be used to build up monopoly.
Does anyone believe that they would
have been granted if this use of them
had been set forth by the applicants or
foreseen by the grantors? If a dozen
Incorporated companies who represent
the entire plant of some nation i'll a
certain industry-that of refining sugar
or making steel rails, for example-and
are protected from foreign competition
by tariff duties, form Trust or an
ASSOCIATION to kill home competition
and maintain high prices, they abuse
not only the powers granted by corpo-
rate charter but also the privileges
granted by the nation through the
agency of the tariff.
The remedy which the people of
Chicago have undertaken to apply Is
one which should be used elsewhere
against other combinations of corpo
rations. The Chicago Gas Trust is au
Incorporated company; the companies
which it has absorbed have been doing
business on corporate charters or
m inh tl,nt
specified. Two of these companies
hold franchises which forbid them to
sell or lease their privileges to or to
combine with any other gas company.
Clearly these franchises can be and
should he annulled. Undoubtedly the
Trust itself has usurped franchises and
abused the powers granted by it's own
charter. The privileges extended to it
by the people should be Withdrawn.
Companies are not incorporated by the
people in order that they may unite to
rob the people:
Suppose that ten groups of citizens
should come before the legi stature of a
state and that each group should say
"We ask you to incorporate US a COM
pany to refine sugar, and we intend to
unite, after we shall have been incor-
porated, with these other companies
i'll forming monopoly of the business,
so that in combination We shall have
power To raise or depress the price of
sugar at will" Upon such q showing
would the cOporate charters be grant
ed! Having been granted upon terms
and conditions wEi@h did not permit
such all abuse OF privileges, if now the
privileges have been abused, il is for
the people TO say whether they shall
not be ithdrawn in response to the
application of their law officers to the
courts in the manner provided by
statute.
There are combinations OF Trusts
which should be attacked in this way.
The Gas Trusts of Chicago is an
example of this class. There are other
competitiOn-killing combinations which
can be more effectively overthrown BY
reduction or the removal of the tariff
duties which hold them up. The men,
bers of the combinations have said to
the people: Don't touch the war;
tariff duties, which were put on to
compensate for internal taxes which
were long ago taken off. Competition
among ourselves IN the protected
home market shall reduce our prices to
4 lair level" And then they have
secretly united to prevent this compe-
ttion and to exact from the people
prices that are exorbitsnt. Wherever
such combinations have been formed
the tariff rates should be reduced,
Ii Is a problem of great importance
which the multiplication of the combi-
nations lays before the American people
for solution. They should remember
tnat the existence of u monopoly
combination which controls all indus
try not only excludes competition in
the work OF supplying consumers, but
in many cases also virtually deprives
consumers of the right to enter this
industry as manufacturers. We are
inclined 10 believe that the problem
can be solved by the enforcement OF
existing laws. Let the erring corpo-
rations be called to account in the
courts, and let the greedy and migrate.
tul tariff rings be broken by q reduc-
ton or a removal of the duties which
enable them to exist,