The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-10-28
THE AGE OF TRUSTS.
The Steel Beam Trust, the Thread
Trust,
The Cordage Pool, the Pitch Trust and
the Envelope Trust.
THE STEEL BEAM TRUST.

The following appeared in the Cleve-
land Leader on September 5, 1889:
'"The structural shapes used in the
building trades are manufactured by
about half dozen firms, none of which
have plants west of Pittsburgh. There
is a small plant in Chicago, but it does
not cut much of figure in the indus
trial world, in competition with the
eastern mills The six concerns alluded
to have been members of trust which
has lived for fifteen years with but one
or two breaks. Every new mill that
makes beams and channels was taken
into the combination as soon as it found
| a foothold. The prices of the trust are
| kept intact, and, it is said, the members
of the association will not undersell
the combination figures cent ton.
The trust fixes the prices of structural
iron for different localities, and in
Cleveland the cost of beam is q cents
per pound, or $5S ton.
f'The value of beams imported into the
United States in 1889, at foreign ports
of shipment was 2.5 cents per pound,
or $26.8S per ton, and the duty upon the
same was 1 and la cents per pound or
S28 8s per ton, or 102 rs per cent The
ture of ton of steel beams based upon
! the cost of production per ton is only
IS. 90 per ton or about per cent. of the
selling price. Who gets the other
$23. ss of the tariff laid solely for the
benefit of the laborer, if not the trust?"
In a speech in the United States SEN
ate, while the Mckinley bill was under
discussion August l, 1890, Hon. Preston
B. Plumb, of Kansas, said:
81 know. Mr.. President, that when
the contractor for the construction of
the statehouse at Topeka came to buy
steel beams to go into that building he
found it to his interest to buy in Bel.
gium and pay the / per cent duty
which the law imposes. Was that be-
cause the American manufacturer could
not furnish the beams? No, because
he offered to do it. Was it because he
could not afford to furnish them at the
foreign price, with freight and 1OS per
cent. duty added? Does any one believe
that? If so, then the duties upon struc-
ture iron ought to have been increased
in this bill But the manufacturers
were in a com bination, and would only
sell at an agreed price, which was far
above that of the foreign manufacturer,
with transportation and duties added.
SIN other words, they proposed to take
the consumer whom they could catch
"short," who had not the facilities to
buy abroad, from whom they could ex-
act an enormous profit rather than do
all the business of the people of the
United States at reasonable profit
and take possession of and maintain
this home market which we had given
them an enormous duty in order that
they might do.
1.-The same was true of the Texas
statehouse, as have it from the lips of
one of the parties who was respon-
were not satisfied with a profit
that came from 103 per cent.
duty and foreign transportation,
but entered into a foreign combination,
still maintained, as have reason to be-
heve, whereby they exacted still great
er prices, prices above the importing
point, and if they could not get them
they would not furnish the goods
"a friend of mine came down here
from Chicago few days ago, appeal
ing to the secretary of the treasury
against the rule of the custom house in
that city in regard to certain manufac-
turers of steel which he was importing.
They were the ordinary tools used by
laborers upon railroads. pick, a half
pick, sledge, crow-bar, shovel, and
so on. 1 said to him: Where do you
sell these goods?' the minimum duty
upon which, as I remember now, was
4s per cent Sell them?' he says. 81
sell them in Pittsburgh Import
them,' 1 said, from Sheffield and
bring them through the custom house
at Chicago pay freight duties, and send
by rail back to Pittsburgh and sell them
there?' Yes he said. DO
you understand he asked,
''that the American manufac-
turer does not manufacture anything
he can not make certain and great
profit on, and that he stands out of the
way of the foreign manufacturer as to
other articles on which he can not
make satisfactory profts?' A
shovel was part of the list. I under
stand that the American shovel, of
which we all are so proud of, the Ames
shovel can be bought on the other side
of the Rio Grande at from so cents to rs
cents piece cheaper than they can be
bought for on the north side. have
been told so by men whom consider
entirely reputable. The manufacturer
insists he will not take any chances, and
so the Carnegies and Jones, of Pitts
burgh, and the Dolans and Dobsons, of
Philadelphia, have prospered and grown
rich beyond the dreams of avarice at
the expense of the people of the United
States, while they were not filing the
market which we expected they would
fill and had right to expect they
would fill when we gave them the
duties which the present law imposes
to be- increased by the bill before us,
upon the articles which they prod uce."
THE THREAD TRUST.