St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-04-25
YOUR OPPORTUNITY, GOV
ERNOR.

!
| YOUR OPPOR rUNITX, GOV
ERNOR.
Five years ago come fall, governor,
we were in the midst of an exciting
presidential campaign. There were a
large number of free traders in this
state who had read with great pleasure
the stirring speech you made in con-
/ gresS in opposition to protective tariff.
and they had read with equal gratlfca-
| ton your interview in which you an
nounced that you had decided to retire
from congress. giving as reason that
| your position on the tariff, antagonizing
as it did. your party, had made you, as
| you happily expressed it, a black sheep
in your party, and had deprived you of
! influence in its cOunSelS. They sup
! posed that you were sincere in your
views. and that you would continue
true to them no matter where they led
you. They thought you had enough OF
your old Port Hudson grit left for that.
They were therefore deeply disap-
pointed and grieved when you gave
another interview in which you said
that ''we will down GROVER CLEVE-
LAND first, and then we will go for the
! trusts and combinations" You may re-
call that the papers of your party in
this state kept that remark standing at
the head of their editorial columns, set
in caps and small caps, during that
eventful campaign. Your party tri-
umphed in that campaign, and the
trusts, having a better conception of
what that triumph meant than you had,
increased and multiplied with the
fecundity of bacilli.
Having retired to private life it was,
of course, no more incumbent on you
than on any other everyday citizen to
Ego for' these trusts, and the admin
istration you aided in restoring to
power seemed to agree with its premier
.who had said that "these trusts are
largely private affairs, with which
neither the president nor congress has
any concern" But you have returned
to public station, and have assumed
with it the duty of executing the laws
you find on the statutes of the state.
You have not only the duty, but you
have the opportunity now to redeem
your promise of 'SS to Ego for these
trusts and combinations"
The GLOBE wishes to aid you in re-
deeming your promise. 1t does not be-
lieve as, it regrets to say, so many do.
that your brave talk then was mere
campaign buncombe. 1t believes that
you were sincere and that, now that you
have the conjoined duty and opportu-
nifty, you will refute the doubters. The
adjournment of that troublesome, med
dlesome, boodleSOme legislature will
give you leisure which you can devote
to the laudable purpose Of downing the
trusts which are thriving under your
nose, within your own bailiwick. You
will, when you study the situation, find
that you have at your back an act detin-
ing and furnishing trusts. the common
law against forestalling and an attorney
general competent and willing to do his
duty. You are thoroughly equipped to
do your duty and redeem your promise.
The legislature has already called to
| your attention the existence Of one COM
bination and provided for its punish
ment. 1t will be the pleasant privilege
OF the GLOBE to call your attention to
others from time to time and invite you
to execute upon them the law of the
state of which you are the chief execu-
tive officer.
This morning it asks your attention to
a combination called the Northwestern
Lumbermen's association. Its location
is in Minneapolis. One W. G. HOLLIS
is its secretary. Its avowed purpose is
to prevent jobbers and manufacturers
of lumber from selling to any one eX-
cept members OF the association, for the
purpose of compelling all retail dealers
| to Join the association and to preserve
the price lists. Its rules provide that if
any manufacturer should sell TO a con-
sumner at less than list price the seller
should be fined the difference, and this
should be apportioned among the retail
dealers in the locality where the con-
sumner or dealer buying the lumber
lived.
All this is in evidence in case pend
ing in the supreme court, in which the
Bohn Manufacturing company Is plant
if and this association is defendant. 1t
is contained in the printed case and in
the findings of Judge CORNISH, from
whose decision the association appealed.
The Judge held the association to have
for its object restraint of trade. which
brings it within the act of '91. The
GLOBE is confident that nothing more is
needed than to call your attention to
this case to have you direct the attorney
general to begin a criminal prosecution.
Other similar trusts and combinations
will be brought to your notice later, and
the GLOBE will join with you in right
good will in ''gOing for these trusts and
combinations"
PASS INTO HISTORY.
II 10 bonad thot tho MjnDacoto ,x,orIri,c