The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1898-03-05

raise the prlce OF their oil to the same nS-
ure as MIR. Coburu's By better oil and
better service he had held his customers,
and the idea evidently was that if he were
put in good humor by an opportunity to
make more money ON account of his ad
vantage with identical prices, he might be
disposed to surrender. SO further nego
tiations were made but with no better
success than before Soon after there was
an accidental meeting between the agent
and Mr. Coburn, and high language was
used The agent threatened to crush MIR.
Coburn, while the latter told the represen-
tative of the Standard company that he
should never make any terms whatever
with it, that they might go ahead and
crush if they wished, that the sooner they
did it the better, that if he was crushed
he should like to have it done soon, in
order that he should know what would be
his fate, but that as soon as the Standard
put up the price of oil to a paying point, he
should put his tank wagons on the road again
and that they might always count upon his
opposition. He further said that he would
never have anything to do with them, for
he thought it would be criminal business
to enter into compact to put up the
prices for the public; it would be Il con-
spiracy against the public, and they were
themselves lot of criminals with whom
he did not propose to be associated,
The consequence was that the price Of
oil was dropped at once quarter of a cent
gallon, and before the end of Il week it
was dropped another quarter. But he
kept his price up to his regular figures and
his customers stood by him. He did not
suffer, and the effort to crush him by lower
ing the price has failed. But Mr. Coburn
says that the company is all the time try
ing to get his customers away from him.
1t follows up all his movements. 1t knows
just where he buys his oil and how much
there is Of it 1t was represented to him.
when negotiations were attempted, that he
could not make any money at the rate at
which he was selling, that he was carrying
on losing fight, and that it would be better
for him to come in and be taken care Of But
her eplied that it was his concern and they
need not worry about his making living.
The company sometimes offers to put oil
in for his customers for nothing, for the
filling of their tanks, thus being able to
say that they have got customer away
from him, and hoping that they will keep
him permanently. But there is 50 much
opposition to the monopoly that he has
been able to keep large trade.
We give SO much space to this affair to
show the animus of the oil monopoly, and
the nefarious methods used to crush out
rivals and destroy competition. This kind
of business has been going on in this coun-
try for nearly or quite a quarter of a cen
tury, and scarcely any city or town but
has witnessed similar proceedings, wher-
ever individuals have had the pluck to
make fight Sell ont, get o~t, quit bus
iness or be crushed, has been the mandate
of the oil monopoly. The record of injus-
tice and outrage, Of which the Coburn case
is but a sample, is most appalling and al
most beyond belief
Not satisfied with monopoly in oil, the
Standard company is taking hold of other
things. 1t is said that the men connected
with it now comprise or control the sugar
trust, and that the production and sale of
steel has come under their dominion But
this overbearing, grasping and cruel con-
Germ is only one of the many monopolies
by which the country is oppressed. They
are all alike as to purposes and methods.
Recently we hear of the Wire trust being
formed, one of the most stupendous in the
country, with reported capital of SIS,
600, 900, backed by Banker Morgan,
which, it is declared, will take in every
wire, it is declared, will take in every
wire, wire rod and wire nail plant in the
United States, with two blast furnaces,
one with its own ore supply, and also three
steel plants. 1t is an undertaking by far
the greatest and most far reaching recorded
in the history of the iron trade. x x 1t
is based on the complete control of the live
wire rod capacity Of the country, and is to
place the entire wire industry, in all its
branches, under the complete domination
of the consolidation. If the negotiations
on foot fully succeed, it is predicted that
the entire iron trade of the nation will be
under the control Of this great trust, and
probably the scheme is to be run by for
eigners.
Then there is the Sewer Pipe trust; the
Coal trust; the Milk trust; the Creamery
trust (now threatening;) the Cracker and
Biscuit trust; the Theatre trust; the Rub
Der trust; the Japanned Ware trust; the
Porcelain trust; the Cotton Thread trust;
the Window Glass trust; and worst of all
the Money trust, which is now grasping
for the privilege of printing, issuing and
controlling the money of the country.
Last spring We read the following press
report in western paper
AT joint meeting of the Pittsburg
and Western Window Glass Association it
was decided that all the window glass fac
tories in the trust shall close MAY 31st,
and remain closed until September or Oc-
tober. The meeting was attended by fifty
representative manufacturers from all parts
of the country. About 25, 900 men will
be thrown out of employment in Indiana
and Pennsylvania alone. The trust has
under consideration the proposition to still
further increase the price of glass -
Think of such iniquity A gigantic
trust given a charter to do business by the
representatives of the people, with satanic
premeditation and malice, deliberately
planning to throw an army of men out of
employment for months, involving the de-
privation of at least 100, 900 fellow NOR
tails, and the probable starvation of many
of them, and not done in the interest of
justice but Of greed And yet this Win
dow Glass trust is not whit worse than
any other. They are all tarred with the
same stick. They are all malignant can
GERS striking at the life of the body polite.
They are corporations, Or aggregations of