The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1893-03-14
ACTUAL HIGHWAY ROBBERY 81
A TRUST.
Mex. CULBRETH

In March, 1885, q resolution Wa
adopted by the L S. Senate to appoint
a select committee of five Senators ID
investigate and report at the next Sci
sion upon the subject of regulation If
transportation, etc. This committee
composed Of Collum, of Illinois, Chai>
man; Miller, Of New York, Plat, If
Connecticut, German, Of Maryland
and Harris, of Tennessee, unsupported
March 2lst, 1885, commenced work in
New York in May, and submitted their
report, which made q large book of
1850 pages, January 18th, 1886. This
is an exceedingly interesting volume in
many respects, though we must CON
TESS we have not read it all. Yet we
have found food for thought in what
we have read, for instance we found
beginning on page 1919 an eye opener,
which reads as follows:
ut is we'll understood in commercial
circles that the Standard Oil Co. brooks
no competition; that its settled policy
| and firm determination is to crush out
all who may be rash enough to enter
the field against 1t; hat it hesitateS at
nothing in the accomplishment Of this
purpose, in which 1t has been remark
ably successful, and that it fifty repre-
sent5 the acme and perfection of o
pOrate greed in its fullest development.
A recent public exposition of it's meth
DDS comes from Ohio, where the cor
pOratiOn operates the Macksburg Pipe
Line, which carries oil to the Cleve-
land and henrietta railroad. This
road is in the hands of a receiver
appointed by the United States Circuit
Court. Complaint having been made
to Judge Baxter Of that court, he in
vestigatei the rate charged for the
transportation of oil by the receiver,
which resulted in his prompt removal
by the court. 1t was found that. while
the receiver was charging shippers
thirty five cents par barrel, the rate
to the Pipe Line in question was but
ten 'ents per barrel. 1t appeared that
the Standard Oil Co. owned the pipes
through which oil is conveyed to tho
road from wells owned by individuals,
with the exception of certain pipes
owned and used by George Rice, and
carrying oil from his wells. To get rid
of this competition, the assistan ;e of
the receiver was sought and obtained.
The company off. red to give the rail
road s.. 900 worth of business each
month, vile Rice could give but $500
worth If it's demands were not COM
piled with, it threatened to extend it's
pipe line from Macksburg to the river
at henrietta. What those demands
were was stated as follows in q letter
filed by the receiver as part Of his de
Tense:
The S andard Oil Co. threatens to
store and afterwards pipe all oils I'M
der it's control unless you make the fol
lowing agreements, viz: You shall
make g uniform rate Of thir5y-tive
cents per barrel for all persons except
ing the Standard Oil Co.; you shall
charge them ten cents per barrel for
their oil, and also pay them twenty
five cents per barrel out of the thirty
five cents collected of other shippers. }"
This is literally highway ROBBERY, a
case Of the power held by a ~soulless,
CONSCIOUSNESS, blind trust exercising
itself. Our people r waking up. The
American Tobacco Trust is nc better
than the Standard Oil Co. Tney have
combined to rob our farmers Of all the
profits of their labor and more too, and
while State legislatures may not be
able to contend with them and check
them, our national lawmakers should
take up the matter and rid the country
of the last one of them, and, we were