The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1899-07-03
How the Trusts Have Affected Prices
to the Taxpayer.
Oregon Daughters viii Have to Go
Without Steam Heat Next
Winter.

plant is on account of a tremendous
advance in price since the first oI
January in materials required in the
construction of heating plants. These
advances, as quoted by the dealers
themselves, are as follows: These adj
vances, as quoted by the dealers them
selves, are as follows; Pipes, 145 per
cent; fittings, 80 per cent; valves, SO
per cent radiators, 80 per cent; boilers,
10 per cent; specialties, such as steam
traps, pressure regulators, 80 per cent
registers 80 per cent; galvanized iron,
62 per cent; three sixteenth sheet steel
quoted last December at $3.50 now
$4.05 +. o. b. at San Francisco; one
inch steel beams, last December were
quoted at $l.15 but are now $3.50 F. o.
B. at Pittsburg. The quotations on
sheet steel and inch steel beams are by
the Wolf & Zwicker Iron Works at Port
land, and in their letter they say, prices
in other sections have advanced in the
same proportions, that is about 100 per
cent throughout.
These vast advances in prices have been
made during the first six months of the
current year. In January and February
trusts were organized with an aggregate
capital of s., ,25O OOO, 1000. From the 18th
of March to the 18th of May, according
to the statement OF the Commercial
Year Book, nearly two billions more of
trust capitalization was added. The
aggregate capital Of the trusts May 10Th,
according to the same authority was in
round numbers, 81 5000, 600, 900 and the
work OF the organization was being Wig
orously pushed.
Last week the president of the Com
mercial Travellers association testified
before the Industrial Commission, now
in session at Washington, d. C.. His
name is p. +. Dove, and he testified an
oath. He said that the trusts have
thrown ont of employment more than
$1,000 statesmen, and have reduced the
salaries of more than $4,000. He said
that the trusts had thus saved" up-
wards OF $ll4,0O0,0O0 year, of
which $50, 0,000,0 900 comes from salaries,
S27 ,000, 900 from the railroads, and $685.
900, 900 from the hotels.
AThat the trusts are earning vast sums
Of money is seen in the exorbitant
prices the agricultural college has had
to pay for its heating plant; that they
are organizing for an unrestrained and
sweeping raid upon the American peo-
pie i'm the destruction OF all COMPETE
tion and the advance in prices OF all ar
ticles is seen in the vastness of their
present capitalization and the rapideiy
with which further organization pro-
ceeds. That the trusts propose not only
to pile up earnings by advance OF prices
and sitting competition, but by crush-
ing also their employees wnen necessary,
is shown clearly by the sworn state
msnt of the president OF the CONNER
cial Travellers Association.
There is food here for earnest rehec-
tion. 1t is natural for man 10 be selfish.
Give him opportunity and he is dis
posed to seize all the dollars he can. The
laborer would take, if he could get it,
a $40 per day wage, the farmer 81 per
bushel for his wheat, the druggist dol
lar box for pills. This is largely true
in all walks of life, from the pauper 10
the millionaire. The men behind the
trusts are still more selfish than the
rest. Unwilling, as the others do, TO
complete for an honest dollar in field,
they plot TO destroy competitors and
lay tribute by force on consumers. They
seek wealth by short cut. They dis
like the tedious method by which other
men gain profits, and, having crushed
opposition, fix at will the prices that
colleges must pay for heating pipes.
They are not, as some newspaper apollo
gists paint them, philanthropists, weep
ng great tears Of sympathy for suffering
mankind. They intend to take every
dollar on which they can lay hands, and
the man who belives anything else
ought TO be in the insane asylum. The
danger from them is in their vast oppor-
tunity. Their vast organization, their
destruction OF competition, their ability
TO advance prices, gives them unpar-
alleled opportunity. II is to make this
opportunity, and then 10 take advantage
OF il, that they organize, They will GER
tainly:ply their methods until consumers
tire Of being plundered and correct the