Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1902-09-30


ministration orators as the favorite
example of a trust built without the
aid of the tariff" the following COM
munication by Mr.. George Rice, to the
New York Times, is interesting. Mr..
Rice Is the Independent producer who
was driven out of the oil business by
the Standard, and his authority will
not be challenged;
To the Editor Of the New York Times:
President Theodore Roosevelt, in
his speech at Cincinnati, Ohio, Sept.
20, had this to say in regard to the
petroleum products Of the Standard
Oil Trust not being protected by the
tariff, to which emphatically dissent
and offer the following figures and
facts He says: Furthermore, the
products of many trusts are unpro-
tected and would be entirely unaffect-
ed by any change in the tariff, or, at
most, very slightly so. The Standard
Oil company offers case in point"
This is a very misleading and false
statement Of existing facts, as the fol-
lowing data conclusively show: On
April 81, 1898, o. L.. Spalding AS
sistant Secreatry of the Treasury,
transmits: ITO officers of the customs
and others concerned" the following
Instructions: "The proviso to Para
graph 626, Act of July "a, 1897, pro-
vides that IL there be imported into
the United States crude petroleum, or
the products of crude petroleum, pro-
duced in any country which imposes a
duty on petroleum or its products ex-
ported from the United States, there
shall in such cases be levied, paid,
and collected a duty upon said crude
petroleum, or its products so imported,
equal to the duties imposed by such
country"
This special proviso in the act ap-
plies to 122 foreign countries. Under
this covert protection in the McKin-
ley-Dingley tariff bill the Standard
OIL Trust for several years past re-
ceived, and now receives, the follow
ing protection and prohibitive duties
on petroleum and it's products, as fixed
by foreign countries, which the United
States adopts as its own and readily
follows suit without specifying in de-
tail the particular countries on which
to levy the same amount of duties
by which petroleum and Its products
from all foreign countries are abso-
lutely prohibited from entering our
ports unless they pass the following
most extraordinary of duties, which
the Assistant Secretary Of the Treas
ury instructs his Costom House agents
to collect, as follows: From Russia
we exact 81 cents barrel, which
country produces about 15 per cent
more petroleum than the United
| States; from Germany, $2.07 per bar
rel; France. $3.50 per barrel on refined
and $252 per barrel on crude; East
Indies, 80 cents per barrel; Roumania,
$4.9G per barrel on crude and 1872
per barrel on refined; Peru, $4,22 per
barrel; Canada, $3.50 per barrel on
refined and $2.10 per barrel on crude;
Mexico, $12.S5 per barrel on refined
and SASS per barrel on crude.
1t is a most significant fact that all
the general tariff schedules have
marked thereon petroleum free. In
comparison with above duties, the
present market price at the well of our
best grade of crude petroleum is $1.22
per barrel Of AZ gallons in bulk, and
of the inferior grade of crude of which
S5 per cent of total Is produced, is
81 cents per barrel, or cents a gallon.
John ID. Archbold, a trustee OF the
Standard OIL company, testified be-
fore the Industrial Commission in
September, 1890, that the percentage
of all business In petroleum and Its
products done by the Standard Oil
company IN the year 1898 was S37
per cent" to which should be added
the business of the Tldewater OIL
company's liz per cent, which per
ccntage 1t gave to them, with guar,
antee OF 100000 per annum against
losses. This makes total of over %
per cent OF this great industry unlaw
fully monopolized by the STANDARD
OIL Trust. which absolutely dictates t.
the producer or petroleum what hi
shall receive for his product, and t
the consumer what he shall pay, al
evidenced by special reports sent ou
by the Industrial Commission to A
States, on the price of illuminating