The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-13
The AIIered PIuubers, Trust.


John c. Dunn, Henry T. Hudson, Charles
a. Johnson and other plumbers who are
not in the trust" sent the following to the
mayor yesterday:
Sections and Of the plumbing ordi-
nance should be SO amended as to exclude
any one who is connected with any COM
bine that seeks to TlonopoliZe the sale or
plumbing material or to prevent or to re-
strain anyone in such business from pur-
chasing material. or seeks by combining to
restrain competition and force up prices.
When it is considered that among others,
a man who for more than fOrty-fve years
has been doing an extensive business here,
and in age and experience may be called
the father of the craft is prevented from
buying goods here and blacklisted elsewhere
at the behests and by so-called master
plumbers association the necessity for
such an amendment becomes apparent The
avowed and ultimate object of this organ
iZation is, by combining, to raise prices to
a point where they otherwise could not be
sustained. In order to accomplish this it Is
sought first, to concentrate business inside
of a close corporation, so to speak, by cut
ting off those from buying goods who as
sert their rights as citizens and refuse to
join the combine and be bled out of 500 as
initiation fee. Secondly, to prohibit plum
bers from selling goods to any one where
they do not put them in, and to put in no
the absolute withdrawal of ali quotations
and list prices from the architects and the
public, thus leaving the people in blissful
ignorance of even the approximate cost OF
an article.
IF a man builds house he may buy
stone, brick, lumber, hardware and any
thing else which he may desire, but he is
not allowed to even conjecture the true
price of plumbing material or use his free
dom in choice of purchase. There is really
no excuse, much less justification, for such
a peculiar programme except the abnormal
enhancement of the pecuniary gains that
would result to the members of the COM
bine. When these arrangements are fully
completed, it win eclipse any scheme that
ever was devised for mulcting the public.
sinister designs that are so clearly against
public policy. But society must do more.
1t must protect the individual in his rights,
and for that reason we have government
that ayowedly guarantees to the members
of the social compact protection to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness. When
the government fails to carry out these
guarantees it has no further right to exist,
and we really have anarchy in the place
of social order. 1t matters little whether
the person is Invested of the fruits of his
labor by the periodical onslaught of the
nomadic ruffian or confscated by the suave
and cunning operator of the all-powerful
trust that jeers at statutes and laughs the
power of the government to scOrn. In the
first instance some mercy may be shown,
in the latter it is said that the individual
has simply got in the way of some inexor-
able law and must be crushed out of exist
ence In other words, the man may not take
the life Of his fellow-fnan in a savage man
ner with club, hut he may do so by TAX
ing the means that suStains life, If he only
does it in accordance with civilized rules
and with uecOTum. A man 3 business, lndL
it may have taken the best part of life
time to establish. is as much his property
as is the flock that has been brought up
by the shepherds care. If a man S prop
erty can be taken without due compenss.-
ton it is time for to look for some other
form of government that will protect the
individual in his rights. We hope that you
will fully consider the gravity of the stua-
ton and make such recommendations as
will thwart their nefarious schemes now in
progress and start new era by reassert-
ing the basic principles of democratic in
situations. that every man shall have an
equal right to life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness with every other man"