St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-09-18
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Continued From FIRST Page.

the big wheat steals. and it is alleged
that the Pillsburys, Candidate Fletcher,
who is SAID to be a stakeholder in the
trust company, and other combination
people control absolutely the Repub-
llcan machinery of Minnesota, and are
now supporting Knute Nelson, the Re-
publican candidate for governor, and
debating the entire policy Of that po-
!ltlcal party. 1t is stated that the affairs
OF the Republican party are settled in
PillSbury's home, and that he and those
associated with him control Gov. Mer
rlam and induced him to pardon out OF
the penitentary the young man Hol-
combe, whose admissions of thievery
have heretofore been given. 1t is al
legged that Holcomb was merely a
scapegoat for Weather and more infu-
entail people, and that he is said to
have received $4,000 for spending in
saltwater penitentiary term which
would have amounted to one year had
not Gov. Merriam pardoned him out. A
letter from the warden OF the Saltwater
penItentiary is printed, showing that
no petition was ever filed for Hocomb's
pardon, and that this act OF Gov. Mer-
RAMS was by the secret influence of the
wheat combine.
Ii is also broadly limited that United
States Senator Washburn paid 5000, coo
to be elected TO the United States SEN
ate, and from a casual reading of the
book it appears that the wheat cOmbi-
nation absolutely controls not only the
warehouse and railroad commissioners
ana all the machinery of that political
office, but also the Minnesota state leg
islature itself. A prominent railroad
man, alleged to have been in the com
bine, is stated to have said chat it costs
less to buy members of the legislature
who are farmers than to buy any other
class of Legislators, for the reason that
the farmers price is usually the mort
gage which he has on his farm. AS to
the evidence or the trusts domination
OF the railroad and warehouse machin
cry, a minority report by Z. j. Moore,
member of the Minnesota legislature,
is given, and also letter written by c.
{. Wolcott to legislative committee
which met in st. Paul in March, 1892, to
try to ascertain whether it could get
any evidence of the existence of the
wheat combine. 1t is stated that
The letter of WolcOtt was never
read before that committee, and the
intimation is made that a majority OF
the committee WAS bought Off, and it is
stated that the minority report of Moore.
which showed the existence OF the com
bine, was suppressed in all the news
papers in the Northwest through the
trusts alleged influence. The letter
written by Wolcott to the investigating
committee states that he lost wheat in
large quantities by stealing in termi-
nal elevators, and that he devised a
scheme to ascertain where the stealing
occurred. He says that he got state
weights on wheat put into an elevator
owned by the Pillsburys, and state
weights out of that elevator, and that he
got state weights on ldenticaily the same
wheat into an elevator owned by Sena-
tor Washburn. and state weights cut of
that same elevator, and that the weights
of the two elevators varied to very
large and extraordinary extent, showing
that there was robbery between those
two elevators, but exactly where he
could not say. He says inshis letter HAT
MIR. PllSbury settled with him for the
shortage in wheat, paying him 81 900 in
cash.