The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-06-17
HOW TRUSTS HAVE
HURT THE NATIONS
TRAVELLING statesmen
President DOVE Of the League
Says Many Are Discharged
and Salaries Reduced.

ing large number of these men oui
of employment. In giving speclnc III
stances he said: -
"The National Enanleling ana
Stamping Company, which depends loI
it's raw material upon the American
TinnIate company, has thrown great
MANY out of employment, ana thoS@
retained have had their salaries re-
duced. The great tobacco compllla-
lions threw out about 306o Sdleslileh'
the Continental Tobacco Company tele-
graphed the discharge or sou III oiI0
day; the baking powder trust mas us
pensed with ali excepting half uoZeh
mon know of two statesmen dis
charged by the trust who were former
w in the employ of the Cleveland bah-
ing Powder Company, one receiving 20 q
salary of $4,000 a year, the other $49oo'
Their routes with those or other uis-
charged statesmen, are covered ny o,
egant at s1S a week. The bicycle trust
will throw out 900 statesmen grauudhy
and will cut down agencies IN every
citv. The chair trust will AFFECT lnlhe-
diately more than 500 statesmen py cut
ting them out of the line
zone man writes me that the Union
Bag and Paper Company mas thrown
ont of employment hundreds OIL sales
mon The number of statesmen out OF
work because of the United states
Rubber Company is 300; the statesmen
retained have been reduced TO Sd1dI
averaging, | am informed, $l5Vo d yedi
The American Tinplate Company CUT
off about 80 out of every l00 statesmen
The American steel ana hoo C enn no,,S
7 have been told, discharged 800 com
mercial travellers in one day. In CIV
ing these estimates | am not colsld
ering the office force thrown oue
through trusts. Sugar and coffee mon
opolies have thrown out lo0o sale7 iii1a
the averag e reduction ia salary OF those
retained is $1,000 a year, 70 per cent
univ of the old force being retained IN
the house position. The Standard OH
COMPANY employs fewer statesmen
than any other concern in the Hlei
tile world of one half of it's capltal-
Mr.. Dove said the trust combinations
had raised the prices OF the coill nd
ties they controlled from TO 1oU per
cent in almost every instance except
coffee and sugar. In these they were
still fighting for control Of the field lie
said his figures in this line were abso-
lutelv correct, being from reliable com
mercial acquaintance. Inc eAanhples
he gave were: Iron pipe, over l0o per
cent; tinWare and enameled ware
about SO per cent; brass goods 6O per
cent. chair trust, just formed, Will ad-
vance nrices 80 per cent; rubber over
shoes Omitted States Rubber COM
panv). advanced prices IA per cent on
NAV l. American Tin Plate, advanced
prices something like 80 per cent cent;
newspaper, 4 to y cent pound; DOCK
papers, and 10 per cent; in common
soap. Is cents to SO cents a box; job
bers and manufacturers Of clocks have
advanced the wholesale prices on ac-
count of advance of metals, 60 per cent;
all metal goods have been advanced;
brass pins, % per cent; pipes and
brushes, 1912 per cent; combs, J12 per
cent; ribbons, 10 per cent. The UNI
brella trust failed four years ago, out
it advanced prices while in existence
ard after it's break Up the return TO
legitimate and healthy prices caused q
loss to the retailer through the stock
on hand
This witness concluded by saying
that before leaving New York he had
been warned by an acquaintance
lawyer, indirectly connected with some
of the trusts, that he was dong
dangerous thing in speaking before the
commission, as he was liable TO be
crushed like a caterpillar.