St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-10-03
SMOOTH AMSOEN.
Continued From First Page.

$4,000 year to discontinue his Compel
tive buying of wheat at one of the sta
tlons in the Northwest. The effort of
Mr. PillSbury, who was assumed to be
the mOuthpiece of the cOmbination,h as
been to show that this contract was
with the Minneapolis d Northern Ele-
vator company, and not part and par
eel OF transaction affecting the COM
blnatiOn. The Herald has already shown
that pro rata share Of the money paid
to Wolcott was supplied by A. Bettin-
gen u Co., millers at Larimore, who,
though they bought grain at Larimore
10 make an independent market and
paid higher prices than
The Combine Paid.
yet were induced subsequently to Join
the combine and pay lower price.
They contributed what would seem to
be disproportiOnate amount of the
expenses attached to the sitting of VOL
colts competition. AS further evidence
that the contract with Wolcott was
not a matter which the Minneapolis
IL Northern Elevator company
alone entered into is the conduct
of Amsden in this connection.
Payments on the contract came
due and there were delays in the pay
ments. Wolcott went to see Amsden,
and Amsden said to him that when he
entered into the contract he had a
promise from other parties to contribute
toward the expenses. Wolcott SAYS he
stated to Amsden that he had never
known anybody but the Minneapolis
d. Northern Elevator company in
connection with this contract, and that
his contract was with that company.
Amsden was asked, so the story goes.
whom he was expecting help from, and
he replied that j. Il. Hiland, general
manager of the Minneapolis Millers'
association. had agreed to charge the
entire sum of $4,000, which was $1,000
per year for five years, to the expense
account of that organization, but Hiland
had now gone back on that agreement,
expressing fear OF an investigation if
expense account of the association.
Complications Among Rfngsters.
1t had not been the intention of Ans
den TO let the members of the associa-
ton, who were the elevator companies,
know what this $4,000 was for. At
least IL was not his intention to make it
a matter of public record, so that IN
charging the $4,000 to the expense
account of that association Mr.. Hiland
would be debiting the association with
sum of money denOminated simply as
general expenses. He objected to this
upon the ground that an investigation
would be demanded because the sum
was so large. In stating that Hiland
objected to charging this sum to the
account of the Minnesota Mlllers' aSSo-
citation Amsden explained that all the
elevator companies were buying
wheat from the association. and
they all got the same benefit
n Or hn ,fy.an ut snI1
apOls & Northern Elevator company
derived, thus conclusively showing a
combination. Amsden was very indig-
nant that Hiland should have gone back
on his promise, and it worried him con-
siderably to think that the Minneapolis
d Northern Elevator company had to
stand this item of expense alone. So
Amsden, the representative of the Pills
bury interests in the Northwest, to
whom Mr.. Pillsbury gives the credit OF
being a very successful bushes man,
expressed the desire to get even with
Hiland, and incidentally to make the
elevator companies smart. Amsden
state that time that Mr.. Pillsbury
was aw are Of this refusal of Hiland, and
that the compelling of the other eleva-
matt of generalship; that Mr.. Pills
bury ould
On general MIR. HIIand,
and would undoubtedly do so. He gave
Plllsbury credit for being a great gen
eral, and said that the latter had long
had desire to control every mill and
elevator in the Northwest, and it was
only matter of time when he would do
so. He said that, as the contract with
WolcOtt then stood, it came very hard
Oh the Minneapolis 81 Northern Ele-
vator company, and he wanted to make
those other companies put up" He
said that PillSbury had it in particularly
for the Northwestern Elevator company
and Cargill Brothers and wanted to
''do' them.
Amsden's feeling against the North
western Elevator company was to Ger
tain extent explained subsequently by
the fact that in his letter to Stuart re-
garding the profits of the elevator COM
panies he stated that the Northwestern
Elevator company made 22 per cent
dividends. OF all the elevators
composing the combination the North
western elevator vas the elevator
which made the least profits in
the Northwest. While other companies
made 80, 40 and SO per cent. this COM
pany made % per cent dividends. The
averaging of wheat receipts by the varl-
Gus members of the combine made it inn
possible for the Northwestern Elevator
company to receive less wheat than the
Minneapolis & Northern Elevator COM
pany, whose country elevators were
almost side by side with those of the
Northwestern Elevator company. Yet
the dividends were less by one-third.
This would indicate that if the Mime
apolis d Northern Elevator COM
pany and the Northwestern Elevator
company received each 500,00 bushels
of wheat, just by way of example, and
II they each paid the same price and re-
celved the same price for the wheat, the
difference in dividends secured by the
two companies was due to the fact that
the Northwestern company
Gave Eet;er Weights
on wheat. Its elevators did not over
run as much as did those of the Mime
apOliS IL Northern. If there is any
credit to be given any one mem Der of
this combination, which does not affect
the existence of Il combination, it is due
10 the Northwestern Elevator company
for Its self deuial in being content with
the products of the minimized robbery.
Of course the farmer is robbed by both
companies. but, inasmuch as he is
robbed less by the Northwestern Eie-
f"eNi Sohip'ut IL may OCCui W nlill dS q
mere matter Of business that whatever
minimum OF robbery exists inures to his
benefit. The farmers discovered that
they got little better results from the
Northwestern Elevator company, and
quite little capital was made out of
that fact by that company, and farmers
very willingly drove out of their way,
as much as twenty-five miles in some
instances, to give their wheat to the
Northwestern Elevator company. not
because they believed that comp any
was strictly honest, but because it was
less dishonest than the Minneapolis &
Northern.
The Conspiracy in Detail.
1t is very evident from this that Ans
den was actuated by desire. and SUBJ
seQuent developments show that he car
ried out his scheme upon the plan sug-
geSted in this interview. He entered
into an agreement, which. of course, on
account of its character, was not re-
duced to writing, by which his partner
la, a..