The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-09-18
HOW THE FARMERS ARE
FENCED IN.
MONOPOLY HAS THEM BY THE
THROAT,

THROAT,
One of the firms which advertise
with us, the Estes and Wood Com
pany of ST. Paul, has submitted to us
some correspondence which shows
how completely the wholesale and re-
tail mercantile houses of the whole
country are combined together
against the farmers. These Supply
Houses, which use our columns, buy at
inside wholesale rates, and sell to
their customers at a small margin of
advance-making their profit by an
inconsiderable per centage Of profit on
large business. This interferes with
the larger profit of the retailers; and
they complain to the wholesalers and
insist that the Supply Houses must
not have goods to sell to the farmers
at any price; SO that they can stick it
to the poor "hay-seeders" to any ex-
tent that their greed may dictate.
The St. Paul firm in question wrote
to St. Louis implement house, giving
an order and ready to pay cash.
Here is the first letter received in
reply.
ST. LOUIS, Mo-, Aug. s, '95.
E SITES & WOOD Co.,
ST. Paul, MINI.
GENTLEMEN:-We have yours of the
lst inst. We wrote you a few days
ago in regard to Cane Mills and Col
tiers, fully explaining our prices,
terms, etc. Do we understand that
you issue a catalogue that you mail to
60 vlyo
want to 20 into that kind of business,
Let US know just exactly what you
intend to do and we can then tell
more about it. Yours truly,
Then followed second etter, as
follows:
ST. LOUIS, Mo-, Aug. 8, '05.
ESTES & WOOD Co.,
St. Paul, Mimi.
GENTLEMEN:-Yours Of the 9th
inst, received and contents noted.
We wrote you second letter desiring
to know something about your mode
of doing business, and what you in
tended to do, and when we receive
reply to that letter we will be better
able to determine just what we would
like to do in the way Of electrotypes,
etc.
Ifyou are &c ranger outfit"and fur
nishing Changers at wholesale prices;
or if you sell at wholesale prices to
the consumer, which is the same
thing, we do not want to follow up
that line of business. Yours truly,
Then came third letter:
ST. LOUIS, Mo-, Aug. IL, '95.
ESTES & WOOD Co.,
St. Paul, MINI.
GENTLEMEN:-We have yours of the
10th inst. We understand your line
Of business, and do not care to fur
nish you cuts for advertising pur-
poses. We refrain in all cases from
doing business with concerns who sell
the consumer direct at price less
than retail and very close to whole
sale. Your truly.
These are samples of what is going
on all around us. The trusts put up
the price of many things, and then
the retail merchants form ring to
raise the cost Of the remainder; and
the wholesale merchants 90 into the
combine. In the meantime the
wretched farmers seem unable to pro-
tect themselves, while the price of
everything they have for sale is beat
en- down to unremunerative figures.
Wheat is AZ cents, barely 20, oats Is to
Is. potatoes 8 cents bushel; but II,
having sold his products, at these fig
ures, the farmer desires to buy lum-
Der he is at the merry Of ring; II he
would buy machinery he is at the
mercy Of another ring; groceries an
other ring; dry-goods still another;
transportation still another; and SO
on to the end of the chapter. And then
part Of the general stealings is de-
voted to flooding the farming dis
tricts with free copies of the city
dailes, to humbug the poor people in
to supporting the robbers at the bal
lot box. 1t is shameful and q
dreadful state of things. And the
blindness and stupidity Of the voters
sustain it all, and the pathway of the
Republic leads down to death.