Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-11-13

ply Of its raw materials and water
power in this country. The 100000
horse power and much of Its spruce
timber has undoubtedly been acquired,
not for present or future legitimate
use. but for monopoly purposes-to
prevent competitors from entering the
field.
MONOPOLY TRACEABLE TO
TARIFF.
This monopoly feature of the .trust,
which alone gives it power to unduly
advance prices, is directly traceable to
our tariff on pulp wood and paper.
Canada is covered with spruce from
Labrador to Alaska The present
growth there would supply us with
wood pulp for one hundred years. At
least 100000 horse power-six times the
paper trusts power-is known to exist
in Canada convenient to spruce for
ests.
These vast supplies should be drSwn
on by the United States, and our own
fast disappearing forests preserved as
far as possible. Were there no tariff
barriers between this country and Can
ada immense pulp mile would be oper-
ating in Canada and the price of paper
would probably never again exceed III
or IA cents per pound. With such
boundless natural resources rendered
avilable our paper manufacturers would
at once recognize the folly of attempt
ing to corner and monopolize spruce
woods and water powers and the prices
of paper and pulp would remain nor
NAL.
A TARIFF TRUST.
That this is a tariff trust is made
clear by the statements of the American
Newspaper Publishers Association in
the Brief in favor Of free paper and
free pulp" above mentioned. Here are
some of them:
"The present tariff rate on printing
paper, unsized, sized or glued, suitable
for books and newspapers, valued at
not above &c per pound, is $40 OF a
cent per pound, or Sc per ton. The
tariff rate on mechanically ground wood
pulp is lip of cent per pound, or
$1.67 per ton.
"Our spruce wood supply is limited.
We therefore urge that the commits
sion should take advantage of the pres
ent opportunity and Immediately Sc
cure sufficient supply of spruce freed
from tariff complications.
1.-THE trust, in furtherance of it's policy
of sitting competition and controlling
prices, has increased it's timber holdings
since this Hatch and Foote statement Of
July Is was issued, and that ownership is
more than sufficient to give it a wood
supply for a. long period of years on pre-
sent production. There are no consider
able water powers beyond the control of
the trust which can be utilized to oper-
ate large plants in competition with the
trust. so that all might be done in the
United States toward the enlistment Of
capital. the development of new enter
prises, or the conversion OF manila mills to
news, or the extension of pulp or sulphite
mills to news production would be incon-
siderable in comparison with the wiplng
out of the duty on paper and the opening
of Canada to our relief.
1.-THE enlightened policy Of New York
30
should be encouraged by putting Canadian
pulp and paper on the free list. If con-
sideration be given by the commissioners
to the inflated securities issued upon the
trust paper mills, then consideration
should also be given to the capital invested
in newspapers, which represents at least
twenty times the capital actually invested
in the paper mills. If the commissioners
feel that the labor employed in the paper
mills ought to be protected, then we sub
NIT that the labor employed in the news
papers affected by this tariff, numbering
forty times the force employed in the pa
per mills, should also be considered.
ONLY ONE REMEDY FOR THIS
TRUST.
''While the enlistment of capital in Am
erican enterprises may exercise a slightly
deterrent influence on the Paper Trust, the
effect cannot be material, because the
trust owns the largest and best powers in
localities where spruce wood is cheap and
from which transportation is prompt and
cheap. A successful and energetic COMPETE
ton cannot be maintained within the Unit
ed States. The outside mills that do or
can make paper are not equipped for the
economical manufacture of news paper.
We must look to Canada and the foreign
countries, where ground wood pulp can be
produced at a cost of $3.50 per ton and
where news paper can be produced for one
cent per pound. Free paper is, therefore,
the only strong and permanent assurance
of protection from this combination.
1.-THE duty on paper stops cheap books
and cheap newspapers. 1t taxes intelli-
gence, because the newspapers are the
peoples school and library. All taxes
upon paper are taxes upon reading and
knowledge. upon the dissemination of in
L., ooh