Sistersville oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1896-1901, 1898-12-14

Rockefeller is said to be adding to
his great wealth at the rate of over
So 900 per hour, while the oil pro-
ducers are annually losing many
millions of dollars, and are slowly,
but surely being driven rom all
claims to the business. Valuable
oil producing properties are con
tinually being absorbed by John d.
Rockefeller and his trust associates
until now little remains of conse
quence which is not controlled by
the trust, or in which they have
not some interests. Men who have
grown old in the business Of pro
ducing oil, now have little or moth
ing to show for their years of toll
and wasted energies. The Stand
ard Oil Trust, with John D. Rookie
Teller at its head, have wantonly
robbed them of their just profits by
arbitrarily depressing the price for
their crude oil below the cost Of
producing. a.-@
In put four cases has the price
been commensurate with the con-
ditions of the markets for the man
ufactured product ofpetroleum and
then only for a short period. All
men who have devoted the better
part of their lives to the business Of
producing oil, in their declining
years have been deprived of an in
dependent means of livelihood and
are now compelled to seek manual
employment from the very trust
who 6lched from them their prop
critics in order that they may .'eke
outa meagre subsistence During
a;period of more than twenty years,
this coronorant of finance haslgrad.
ually been tightening the chains of
slavery around the wriggling forms
of the oil producers until now the
very life has been ~squsezed out Of
them and their families are left de.
pendent upon their own efforts to
secure livelihood under the inost
arbitrary and hhmiliating condi-
tions of slavery and seridom that
can exist in a country supposed to
be governed Under flee and indie
pendent constitutional laws. Equal
Rights to all" What a fallacy.
The law for trusts who govern the
country recognizes no rights Of the
people. One tax for the rich and
all sorts of taxes for the poor.
Political corruption supercedes
political economy.
Trusts own the representatives of
the people who are sent to Wash
ington to make and execute our
avs, with few exceptions, body and
breeches. The few exceptions are
In such minority that their. honest
but public protests against . the
crimes OF these political prostitutes
OF the trust, come to naught. The
oil producers know better than any
representative of the country the
makeup of these trust magnates.
Religiously, they are hypocrites;
morally they are lepers, corrupting
the souls of men; financially, they
are INSCRIPTIONS highwaymep.
They prostitute their religion and
their morals in their ambitions pur.
suit of wealth. They debauch and
ruin men that they may be made
to become their slaves and be used
to assist in destroying the man
hood and independence of all who
oppose their will. Five men who
assenbl each day at 26 Broadway,
New York, make and dictate the
price for the crude product of more
than FIVE thousand independent oil
producers. Five men associated
with John D. Rockefeller make and
dictate the price for the manuiac-
tured illuminating product of pc
troIeum for more than flfty million