New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1892-04-20
a GREAT COMBINE
Minority Report in the Grain
Investigation Case Sub
mitted.
Mr.: Moore Finds a Great Com
bine Organized to Lower
Prices.

Committeeman Moon has submitted a
minority report on the wheat investigation,
1t isavery volun,inous report, containing
over 20. 600 words. A synopsis is given be-
| low:
| Representative Moore first expresses his re-
grets Tor being unable to sign the majority re-
port. In his opinion the duty of the committee
was to report the evidence, something more
than an expression OF the committees opinion
OH the serious topics covered by the investiga-
ton IL WAS the committees duty, he believed
to report specific findings when fully justified by
the evidence i'll order that they may be the basis
ZOE the Recommendations for legislation. He
could not sign the majority report because it
did not make specific findings. or such findings
as ne thought ought to be made in view of the
testimony.
Mr.. Moore then explains the reasons
winch moved him to coincide with most of
the conclusions o. the majority report.
| Speaking OF the combine the minority
| report states:
THE COMBINE.
cannot agree with the finding in the majority
report that the evidence fails to disclose a com
bilie which fixes the price to be paid for wheat
throughout the regions of Minnesota and the
Northwest. On the contrary | most consci-
| entiously declare that from the evidence taken
before this committee it cannot be successfully
denied that such y combine does exist through
out the State OF Minnesota and tine Northwest,
and that the direct effect OF such combine is to
! deprive the producer OF wheat OF a large per
| cent OF the profits OF his industry,
| UNDER THE Law OF SUPPLY AND DEMAND
Duluth and Minneapolis should have three
| times the power. influence and every other ele-
ment IN liking the price OF Minnesota grain than
!, Chicago and Milwaukee. What fiction prevents
| this natural application of the law OF supply
| and demand to the market at Duluth and Min
| neapol1s? Ii Chicago, with the wheat aggregated
| at milwaukee, having but Il little over II ,OOO,-
| 600 bushels to its credit can fix the price for
63,OOO.OO0 bushels gathered at Duluth and
Minneapolis it most certainly is done by some
| power OF her than law OF supply and demand. TO
| complete the logic OF this reasoning it be I'M
derstood that the evidence i'll this case discloses
the fact that the lake and rail rates from Du-
| luth to the seaboard as reported in the resti-
| mony taken July 2, 1891. and March 8, 1892
| make the freight from Duluth to the seaboard
the nearly equal rate and freight IRON Chicago
to the seaboard.
Bear in mind in this connection that the ton
| mage to and from Duluth is the equal OF the
tonnage to and from Chicago. The freight being
| practically the same from Duluth to the sea-
board as it is from Chicago TO the seaboard, the
| tonnage OF the TWO ports being equal. what IA
| cility, what power. what influence is it which
| permits Chicago, with twenty-one millions to
govern the price OF sixty-three million bushels
at Duuthg Tine situation OF the Duluth and
| Minneapolis markets-their PROSTATE situa-
| ton to the influence OF unnn tural combine is
| douby told and described when it is ascer-
| tanned from the testimony and all admitted fact
| that the price OF wheat at Duluth is permitted
and forced to be the price at Chicago. less the
| freight rate from Duluth. l quote now the tes-
| timony OF Mr.. Amsden bearing upon this cues
| ton, which is here introduced.
! NOW WHAT POWER
]
ference OF 6h cents between Chicago and Duluth.
| unless some power foreign to the law OF supply
| and demand arbitrarily fixes this difference?
| Why does not the 63 900 900 bushels OF wheat
| at Duluth and Minneapolis control the II OoO-
/ 600 at Chicago and Milwaukee,? 1t may be that
| my brethren on the committee do not under
stand the word combine to mean what l under
| stand that word means. II my brethren o.. the
| committee understand that no combine has
/ been discovered in the sense OF the discovery Of
the two or three or more persons VINO sit down
l and arbitrarily fix the price OF wheat at Duluth
/ and Minneapolis, then must agree with them
that the evidence has not reached so far into the
/ heart of this com bine as to discover the names
| OF these two or three or four individuals. But
| the word combine as used by me and as believed
| from the testimony to exist and control the
| price OF wheat III Minnesota and the Northwest
| is rather that the price is unnaturally fixed and
enforced by those interested in the gathering Of
| the wheat crop OF Minnesota and the Mort Invest
| npon other than the natural competitive aud
honorable principles. There can be no just rea-
/, son why, with equal facilities and with equal
! freight rates, the 63 900, 900 bushels at Duluth
| should not rather control the . /. 600 900 trbu-
! tary to Chicago than be controlled by it. What
/ l mean by combine is that the united action OF
/ all the dealers in wheat in Minnesota and the
| Northwest is based upon the fiction that the
! price OF wheat at Chicago necessarily governs
| the price at Duluth and Minneapolis. That the
/ entire wheat business OF Minnesota and the
/ Northwest is carried on under this diction IS
| logically admitted by every witness who has
| been before the committee. How is this accom-
/ plshed9
THE TESTIMONY SHOWS
/ called the chamber OF commerce, and at Duluth
/ a similar board called the board OF trade. The
| testimony shows that these boards are COM
posed, SO far as the wheat dealing interests are
| concerned, OF dealers i'll wheat. both elevator
| men and commission merchants. with n few
| bonanza farmers. II is conceded that these
| boards meet daily and transact between them
1 selves the purchase and sale OF wheat. 1t is
also conceded that these sales largely tcti-
tious sales. 1t must be borne in mind that the
| wheat of Minnesota and the Northwest cannot
/ escape these dealers who control the board of
| trade at Duluth and the chamber OF commerce
i at Minneapolis They own all the elevators
along the different lines of railroad Throughout
/ this wheat region. They have all the facilities
at the lake ports. 1t is impossible for any con-
/ siderable amount OF wheat to escape their
/ handling. They necessarily have the sympathy,
If not the cooperation Of all the lines OF trans
! portation. 1t seems, from the testim ouy that
the dealers adopt, as the price to BE- paid for
wheat each day, the closing price which they
make on the proceeding day. And how do they
1 make the price? Do they fix the price in regard
to the value OF the wheat as calculated by the
| law OF supply and demand, the freight rates and
the facilities for exportI Ii this were honestly
its character, would necessarily govern the
price paid for wheat. 1t matters not whether
this price is Il xed IN open board by secret
Il committee. 1t is q price which they, the eIe.
yator men and dealers fix. 1t is the result OF
the combined interests OF the dealers, the ele-
vator and commission men. 1t makes no diff.
ference by what means it is ascertained, fixed
or agreed Epon. The testimony. referred to
hereinbefore, fully establishes the fact That
every elevator man i'll the Northwest adopts
the list price promulgated
y BY THEIR COMMON AGENT.
Frank II. Irons at Minneapolis, and whether
the elevators and dealers Shall deny that Frank
Irons fixes the price and shall claim that such
price is fixed by themselves. either i'll open board
or by committee, i'll whatsoever way they
j shall fix the same, and afterwards communi
Gated to their general agent, Frank Irons. Why
do they not fix the price i'll accordance with the
law of supply and demand? In order to under
4 stand this question:. it necessary to refer &c
deductions and inferences which follow the testi
mony. 1t is the testimony OF all persons ex
s amined on that subject that the price ut Mime
apolis is the price at Chicago less freight from
Minneapolis TO Chicago. This is the agreement
OF the dealers and elevator men. This is the
combine.
i That there is no power in the business circles
4, which. emanating through the boards OF trade
| the transportation lines or from whatever
source engaged in the wheat traffic in Minnesota
| and the Northwest which confronts tie despot
ism OF this forced condition of the market. is
the highest proof to my mind of the existence O.
II THE MOST TREMENDOUS COMBINE
that was ever known III the history OF the world
and that this can exist only by virtue of an un
natural law is another proof of conspiracy; for
in the absence OF a conspiracy. Gods natura
| laws take their own course. No one VINO reads
Il the testimony can fail to that this cond