Willmar tribune., 1900-10-31

''The indications are that there will
be large sum uncollected on Dec. list
this year." BY this statement they
can only mean that the farmers either
cannot or will not pay their notes
when they are due. He certainly
cannot mean to say that they cannot
pay, for then we would be forced to
conclude that this boasted Republican
prosperity is all moonshine. If he
means to say that the farmers will not
pay, he then charges them with
dishonesty, and that is an insult which
the farmers certainly will not be slow
to resent.
In former years under Republican
rule the output of the prison twine
plant was sold to the dealers in large
quantities at low wholesale price,
and if the farmers applied, they had
to pay a higher retail price. The
result of it was that the dealers bought
up the output of the twine plant and
sold 1t to the farmers at the same
price at which they sold the product
of the trust, thus making from to 5
cents pound, while the farmer gain
ed no benefit from the state plant
whatever. =. In this regard, the Board
of Managers in their report says:
During the past season not a pound
Of twine, so far as We are able to
ascertain has been sold to dealer,
The entire output of the factory hav-
ing gone to individual farmers or
farmer clubs, the price having been
the same to all; this has to a large
extent obviated the dissatisfaction
which resulted from the former policy
Of disposing of a large per cent of the
output to the dealers, and discrimin-
ating in price between small orders
and car load lots"
fectively disposed of the mis-state-
ments and deliberate falsehoods ad-
vanced by the above Honorable gen.
tlemen, that the only thing left for
the Republican calamity howlers was
to attack the quality Of the twine
made this year. This attack called
forth the following indignant letter
from Mr. Hanlon, who has been the SUI
perintendent of the twine factory ever
since it started, and having been in
control long before the advent of the
present administration, he certainly
cannot be accused of being unduly
biased or Of being a creature of the
present administration. His letter ap-
peared in the Minneapolis journal"
October 18th, and reads as follows:
To the Editor of the Journal: no.
t1ced in last nights paper the follow
ing statement, referring to the prison
twine:
''The twine was overloaded with oil,
was uneven and short in length; the
raw material was as good as ever; the
machines were the same machines that
have been used In the past. beside
some new ones; the workn.en were
the prisoners, as in the past: yet a
plainly inferior quality of twine has
been turned out"
I am now, and have been ever since
the twine factory started, it's superin-
tendent. l have had and now have
absolute control of the manufacturing
department. My assistants are men
OF long experience and second in care
fulness and skill to none in this coun-
try. The quotation from your paper
is direct reflection on them and on
me. The twine manufactured this
year has been as good as any sisal or
standard ever made In this prison.
The prisoners under my supervision
have never done their work more in
telligently and willingly than they
have this. year; as a matter of fact,
we have not used as much oil in pro-
portion this year as we did last.
At various times during the past
season l have secured balls Of twine
made at other factories. and with two
exceptions have found none equal in
quality and length to that made by
us.-~1 still have these samples With
the possible exception of three facto-
ries in the United States, there is no
twine made nor has there been any on
the market this year as good as that
sent out from the prison. We have on
hand now about 100000 pounds of
twine, and I challenge any man or
committee from any part of the state
who honestly wants to know what sort
of twine we have made and are MAX
ing to come over here, select from
this vast quantity a bale at random.
and compare it, ball for ball. with a
bale Of any other sisal 4 have no
hesitation in saying that It will be
found, both in length. quality and
-cVCAuCSosrztO UC oQudl " duy SlSdl OF
standard twine made In this country.
Yours respectfully, z.s4
III 5t5S rsS:.s S Thomas Hanlon,
superintendent Of Twine Factory.
The farmer will find that nearly
every Republican politician and deal
er. IN Twine, is bowling about the way
the sTwine Plant at the Prison has
been mismanaged. BY selling direct
sly to the farmers the Prison Twine
Plant has incurred the i'll will Of the
dealers, and 1t is their object. to de-
-stroy this comp petition 50 that they can
help the Twine Trust to rob the farm
ers as It was done in former years.
~ It IS the TWines Trust and its agents
that are running down the Prison
9TWine Plant. IN the case OF the agent
this can be readily understood but It
Is 9 matter Of surprise that two pub
lie officers should allow themselves TO