The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-10
Another Kind of Trurtr.


Are the big department stores. which are
being established in the various cities of
the country, trusts? Business men Of chi
cago seem to think they are About a
thousand of the retail merchants Of that
city have arranged to visit the Illinois
capitol this week and appeal 70 the legis-
lature TO pass a bill for the suppression
OF such stores. They say they cannot
compete with them, that they are losing
their business and that they see bank
ruptcy in the near future.
There is no doubt some truth in what
these merchants say. but what can the
legislature do to help them? If the big
department stores were suppressed would
it be very long before an attempt would
be made to suppress big stores which deal
in only one kind of merchandise? The
merchants having smaller stores might
say they couldn't compete with the big
store. and if departments stores can be
suppressed because they drive out Of bust
ness merchants who do only a small
business in one kind of merchandise, why
cannot big stores, carrying only one kind
of merchandise, be suppressed? As a mat
ter of fact some of the great trusts, such
as the American Sugar Refining Com
pany, are merely big concerns which deal
in only one article of merchandise.
1t is difficult to see how the Illinois leg
islature can suppress department stores
in Chicago, or any other Illinois city
without making a precedent that would
cause an immense amount of trouble.
As we see it now, there are Objectionable
features to trusts. Their tendency is to
drive out of business the small business
concerns which are in the same business
but are they not the result OF existing
conditions? Has not competition called
them into life? And if so, are they not
here to stay?
Very little money was made by any one
of the many coal oil companies, which ex-
listed when the Standard Oil Company
was formed. The weaker ones were fail
ing, one after another. The Standard Oil
Company gradually absorbed about all of
them. The consumers of coal oil products
have not suffered, because they get these
products at a less cost than they did
when there were many coal oil compan-
les. If all of these companies had con-
tinued their competition, nearly all of
them would have been ruined sooner or
later.
What is true in respect to the Standard
OH Company is true in respect to the SUI
gar trust. Before the sugar rehneries were
combined under one management none OF
the refineries was making money. Nol
a few of them were drifting towardA
bankruptcy.
This question of trusts should be given
very careful study, with the view of find
ing out what is best to be done in respect
to them. 1t is doubtful if they can be
suppressed. and it is questionable if con-
sumers would be greatly benefited by
their suppression.
Some of them, however use their pow
ers in a way they should not be permit
ted to do. They do not hesitate to crush
competitors and they practically compel
transportation lines to Yield to their de-
mands. All things considered, therefore,
it would seem to be the wiser course to
endeavor to control trusts. They can be
controlled much more easily than they
can be suppressed.
This attack upon the Chicago depart
ment stores makes it clear that if the
suppressing of trusts We're begun it would
be difficult to find a stopping place. Many
business concerns would be attacked on
the ground that they were trusts.