Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-08-26
WILL BUCK A TRUST.
Retail Butchers of New York Pre-.
pairing to Fight the
big Five"
WILL MAKE THE sCHEME POPULAR.

Hope to Have Labor Organizations and
Other Antitrust Forces on the SUBJ
scription Books - Denial That 1t Is
Higher Priced Cattle That Makes Beef
So CostIy-Price To Be Cut to the Ex-
tent of Four Cents.
New York, Aug. 26.-The executive
cummitlee of the Retail Butchers Pro-
tective association met Thursday night
to consider means to fight the Chicago
wholesalers. They decided to recon-
mend the raising of fund of S., 000,-
600. OF this sum $4,000 900 is to be
raised by the retailers themselves and
$4,000, 900 by popular subscription at 81
a share, with maximum holding by
any one person of twenty shares. When
the committee went into session ii had
pledged subscriptions of 100000.
When it finished this had been in
creased to 81 .000,G President Wagner
said there was no doubt whatever that
the entire 100000 will be quickly
raised by the retailers in New York
city alone. The remaining $4,000, 900
il is intended to dispose of to custom
ers, small merchants, labor organiza-
tions, and others who are opposed to
trusts. Some of the retailers have as
many as 500 customers and many of
these have already asked permission to
subscribe to such stock.
Hopes to See n Big Cat.
By comparing notes the members of
the executive committee decided that
they personally knew of men who
would take 100000 of this popular
stock. President Wagner said the as
ISOLATION would confine its efforts for
the present to this city, taking in the
five boroughs. He said he had con-
ferred with stock raisers and their rep
resentatives. and was assured that
enough stock tO meet the demand for
beef by this city will be furnished.
Nothing has yet been done to prevent
rate determinations by the railroads,
but President Wagner said he had
been assured by stock raiSerS that he
need anticipate no trouble from this
source when his company assumes
tangible shape and becomes really for
midable. George Kahn says the re-
tailers are now obliged to sell their
meats at an average ranging from 121a
company gets into the field he hopes
to see the price cut from to IL
cents on the average.
Says Prices Are Arbitrarily Fixed.
President Wagner says the local
agents of the Big Five" meet in this
city every Monday morning and arbi-
trarily fix the price to be charged for
the week. He says it is not regu-
lated by the market conditions, but by
caprice, whims, and avarice.'' 1t is |
by the retailers that there are |
available here for the new abattoirs |
more than 5000 men, who have been |
by many causes to leave the |
butcher business and get into other |
avocations. Wagner says the numerous |
responses to advertisements for help |
by the butchers prove that these men |
most of whom are highly skilled
will quickly return to the trade. When |
asked what truth there was in the |
rumor that John d. Rockefeller, VIM. |
c. Whitney, and other great capital |
lists had offered help to fight the trust, |
Wagner said committee was now try
ing to meet Rockefeller. but he is out !
Of the city, and has not been accessi-
BILE.
Prices of Cattle Not Higher.
Wagner did not know what Whitney |
Intended to do. He says a number of |
wealthy cattlemen have agreed to come
Onward the moment the venture takes
angible shape and take large blocks
If the stock. Both President Wagner
md Mr.. Kahn laughed at the claim of
he trust that it has to pay more for
attic now. and that this is the cause of
he rise in the prices of its meats.
Both say the stock raisers are COM
planning bitterly of the higher meat
,rices, but that. on the contrary, they
ire at the mercy of the trust, which.
hey say, is scaling down the prices for
took.