The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-06-07
The Blight of Trusts.

The .jOurnai referred recently to the
practical destruction Of a lately thriv-
ing town i'll Pennsylvania iy IL trust
The town had been built up by sev
eral mills for the manufacture of wire
anu wire nails. 1t was almost entirely
dependent upon these mills; they were
profitable to their owners and gave
employment to hundreds Of men. wO-
men and children. A trust was form
cd to control the industry in which
these mills were engaged and their
owners had no choice but to sell out to
the trust or be crushed by it. They
sold out. The mills were closed at
once, their employees were thrown out,
every other interest in the town was
paralyzed and ruined, every store was
closed, property that was valuable Il
few weeks before could not be sold at
any price; blasted town and an almost
despailing population was the spectacle
which the lnerciless power of n trust
presented where there had been IL scene
of prosperity and happiness.
This is not the only instance of the
blighting exercise of the power of com
bines and monopolizing capital that
has recently been witnessed in the
United States.
The Washington Post gives this ac-
count of the effect of trust methods
upon another town:
"The town of Fairmont. near Cincin-
natl, affords pertinent illustration of
this phase of trust operations. The
American Steel and Wire Company
owns wire fence works there that have
been in operation for twenty years or
more. Until recently these works en-
pioyed 500 men, nearly all of whom
lived in Fairmont or its immediate vi
cinity. The pay-rolls amounted to
something like $4,000 n weck-more
than $o50,000 year. 1t is said that
employment was steady, wages good,
and that many of the workmcn own
their homes. Fairmont was, in fact,
typical manufacturing village. Last
Tuesdaynight the works sclOsed-'clOsed
down indefinitely The trust does not
need them, because it can make all the
wire it can sell at other plants where
production is cheaper. These works
were purchased Mt high figures in order
to kill off competition. Their cost, as
we'll rs that of others similarly treated,
has gone, with nobody knows how
much water, into the capitalization of
the great combine.
"This sort of thing bears hard on the
diaD1oco1 vuorl-,pop ouA %boir fou,ilsou
1t is more of tragedy than a comedy.
And this is what is going on in many
another town. But the injury is not
confined to the workmen and their de-
pendents. The weekly payment of
$4,000 will be sadly missed in the busi-
ness Of the town and among the farm
ers of the adjacent country. Trade
will languish, the value Of real estate
will decline, and discomfort will pre-
vail where prosperity and happiness
abOunded."
The Post, which has not been con-
spicuOus us an antitrust newspaper,
admits that Sin many of the States
there are small towns that have been
blasted by the trusts through the shut
ting down Of manufacturing establish
ments."
We wonder if the men who organize
and control trusts believe that they
can push the methods which have made
them already despichble just as far as
they please.
We wonder now much longer the
people will tolerate trusts or any po-
litical party that does not oppose them,
not by words and platforms, but by
actual, practical aid effective legisla-
ton to prevent tho outrageous abuse
of their power.-Atlant0 journal.
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