The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-01-12
THE KING OF TRUSTS.

For month or two past notes have been
given out by the newspapers OF move
meut among the leading railroad kings,
headed by jay Gould, to unite all the rail-
roads of the country into one huge trust, as
completely as If all were one gigantic,
monstrous corporation. The movement
was partially brought to a head on Wed
nesday at meeting of about fifty railroad
presidents. bankers and capitalists in New
York city The articles of association OF
the huge monopoly were, at that meeting,
duly formulated and agreed upon, and II
now only remains, apparently, for the vari-
Gus railroads Of the country to indicate
their approval Of the articles and become
mem beers Of, or in other words, to be merg'
ed in the huge corporation
The plan is, that the membership Of the
tssociaiion, or trust, shall consist of the
Presidents of all railroads joining II,
These Presidents shall appoint a board of
managers, who are to be the executive Off
GERS of the concern.
The objects of the association are de-
clared To be, 10 establish uniform, stable
rates If freights and fares on all the rail
roads of the country, to stop all underbid-
ding or underwriting OF rates, and TO do
away with everything in the form Of solic-
itation for business by any railroad to
the detriment of any other, In short, the
earnings OF all roads are TO be as com
petely Jumped or pooled" rs If they were
but one company, and division of profits
afterwards made on principles based on
the money value of the various railroads
belonging to the body.
Railroads refusing to enter the trust are
To he treated rs enemies and crushed
their only salvation being TO join.
No new or competing parallel lines will
be allowed To be built, and the object par.
tcularly of including bankers and capital,
lists in the membership of the trust is, that
they shall agree to make no loans to, or ne
gotiate bonds, or In anywise recognize in
the money market the securities, or even
existence, of corporation or company
proposing to build a new road without the
consent of the trust.
In short, the plan conremplates com
plete consolidation into one body. Reports
of business, instead of being made to the
l. ,tnp L.,, ,la 10
heads Of the trust, and all railroad officers
and employees, instead of being RESPONSE
bic 10 the officers of the companies by
whom they are nomlnalIy employed, are 10
he responsible to the trust, by which they
can he fined disciplined, or dismissed.
What do the Iowa, Wisconsin and ILL
nois graugers, who imagine they have
done considerable good work in the way
of checking the greed Of railroads in those
There is but one hope-and very faint
one II must be confessed-of protection
against such monster of greed and impo
siton, and that lies In a judiciary consist
ing OF Judges like Judge Barrett, who u
few days ago In New York dealt such
deadly blow to the great sugar trust. His
decision, in word, Is, that every refinery
or corporation, joining the trust,
thereby surrendered Its own legal existence
aud became defunct. So the great pro-
posed railroad trust may be defeated by
similar decisions, that all railroad COM
panies joining 1t thereby forfeit their own
legal existence, as completely as If their
charters were taken from them or expired
by limitation.