Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1900-10-11
SOME INFORMATION
FOR MARK HANNA
Republican Chairman Enlightened
IN Regard to the Existence
Of Trusts.
BAD BREAK OF The AwARwIcx'
jhe Republican KingmaAer's Blum.
derins Speech Causes No End of
Trouble for His pnrty.-Co.
ere We Tactics again.

Washington special; Bryan had no
difficulty in finding trust in his own
| state which furnished him text with
which to refute Hanna's assertion
about their non-existence. Bryan
traced the history of the starch trust
and showed the various steps by
which the independent concern was
absorbed and the price of the product
| raised
Hanna is popularity credited with
being II member OF the Besssemer ore
producers trust. This trust Is In a
hurry to make millienr. 1t has "a
practical monopoly on certnin pro-
cesses of converting ore. 1t now
charges $3.50 ton To lay ore down
at the lake front In Cleveland. This
is an advance of S2.G0 n ton over the
prices charged last year.
1T Is estimated that the output of
Besselner ore Is 20,000,0oO tons annu-
ally. 1T only costs about dollar a
ton to get the raw material into con-
dition for shipment. 1t will be noted
that this trust does not spend much
in wages more than the coal trust.
On this output the profit must be
nearly $eo,ooo,ooo year. Hanna
shares in this. He denies that the
company is Il trust. We'll, trust
might easily be as sweet under any
other name when it yields millions a
year to each member of the combine
controlling it,
The farmers are interested in the
| steel and wire trust. 1T has nut Its
prices SO high this year that they
have quit putting up fences. The
| price of wheat has not advanced to a
point which will Justify the payment
of 81 per hundred pounds for the same
kind of barbed Wire that sold at $1.s5
| lin 1896. The trust has been organ
lied since then. 1t has been profit
able trust for the directors. John
| w. Gates testified before the indus
| trial commission that the profits of
4 this trust for the first six months
| We're over S15,0O0,000, and that five
1 plants had been closed in that time to
1 limit production. This threw thou
| sands of men out of work. When the
| farmer concluded that barbed wire
had become Il luxury which he could
not afford the surplus was sold in the
European market for % per cent. less
\ than here. II helped to swell that
total of European exports which the
| republican orators love to discuss.
| III Hanna doesn't know of a single
| trust the farmers could inform him
| about the need for restraining this
particular one from making prices
prohibitive.
This same trust makes wire nails.
It's capital stock is S9O,0o0.0o0. In two
Years it lar advanced the price of
nails from S1.47 to $3.50 u key. In
this connection it may be noted that
the worlSmcn employed by this trust
have received no advance. On the
contrary, they have recently gone
back to work at a reduction after
spending two months i'm idleness. The
trust starved them out. They We're
glad to get back to work on any
| terms.
This list of trusts and their profits
might be continued indefinitely. Ev-
cry farmer and wageworEer know
what sharp advance there has been
in prices in the last three years. The
increase is upon the necessaries of
life and the people are obliged to sup
port the trusts.
The republican politicians who are
more astute than Hanna are taking
an apologize air about trusts and
when they have had time to discrim-
mate between good and bad trusts"
This attitude will not win votes. The
Mckinley administration will be
! judged on it's record. 1t has had four
,s,,1, 10
Its own congress deliberately stifed
any attempt at trust legislation, but
it let the armor plate grab get
through, it favored the ship subsidy
measure and allowed itself to be dom
mated as to it's policy toward Porto
Rico by the sugar trust.
The republicans are the apologists
for trusts. Bryan is not. lie says:
81 shall recommend such additional
legislation as may be necessary to dis
solve every private monopoly which
does business outside the state of it's
origin; and if, contrary to my belief
and hope, Il constitutional amendment
is found necessary, ! shall recommend
such amendment as will empower
congress to protect the people of all
states from injury at the hands of in
iividuais or coroprations engaged in
interstate commerce.
The trusts are hoping for another
four years of Mckinley's administra-
ton. lie is Il plant tool in their
hands. 1t will need all the energy
! and decisivcness of Bryan to check
the impetus which the trusts have all
ready gained.
Hanna is making desperate effort
to persuade the coal operators to
grant concessions which will break
the miners strike and get the men
back to work before election.
He realizes that 100000 men on a
| strike is not a cheerful nme,, ,rha,,