Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-08-22
ARROGANT BEEF BARONS
They Are Again Planning to
Raise the Price of Meat.
YET CATTLE ARE PLENTIFUL.


and Consumers All Suffer From
Workings of the Trust.
How little has been accomplished by
President Roosevelt in his spectacular
trust fighting is becoming more and
more apparent. The trust of all others
that is detested by the American peo-
pie is the beef trust, and when Attor
ney General Knox commenced legal
proceedings against the beef barons no
action of the administration was more
applauded. 1t was, however, pointed
out at the time that the injunction
or fall far short of stopping the eXtor-
ton of the trust, and present wholesale
and retail prices of beef prove the
futlity of the half measure adopted by
the administration. If the president
had ordered his attorney general to in
dict the beef barons under the criminal
clause of the antitrust law, the men,
bers of the combine long before this
would have been serving a term of i'm
prisonment as the law provides. But
President Roosevelt and his attorney
general could not steel their hearts to
such a strenuous way OF bringing the
beef trust barons to time, and took the
long and tedious path of civil proce-
dure, by the injunction route which
could but result in failure.
The people are suffering and praying
for quick action, while the proceedings
are still in the courts and the extortion
continues. A press dispatch from
Omaha, giving the condition of the
market, says, Already the rise in the
price of beef has taken effect in num-
Der of western cities and it is expected
TO reach New York and the east within
a few weeks
The Philadelphia Bulletin, comment
ing on this, declares:
IF this statement is true it indicates
that in spite of the preliminary re-
verses which the beef trust has met in
the courts its hackers believe that they
can safely give the screws another turn
and squeeze still higher profits out of
the consuming public"
That the rise In the price of beef is
barons is made clear by the large in
crease of the supply of beef cattle In
Chicago and other markets. On Aug.
the Chicago Chronicle in It's market
report gives the receipts of cattle for
the year to date as follows: 1908, 1903
OBS; 1902, 1.579.153 showing an in
crease of 323, S72 head for the present
Xh.ay.c 10, rpfkx- -
The receipts of sheep for the same
period also show an increase of 72,-
29S head The prices quoted in the
same newspaper for corn fed western
steers was 81 to So % per 100 pounds,
the highest price for prime beeves be-
ing $3.50 and the lowest price quoted
for steers being $2.75. The prices at
which the beef trust sells to the butch
ers is difficult to arrive at with exact
ness, for neither the Chicago nor New
York newspapers quote them, and the
conclusion must be that the wholesale
price of dressed beef is omitted for
purpose. But the price of dressed ma
tive beef in New York on the same day
as the above prices of cattle are quot
ed was 61a to 915 cents per pound and
refrigerator beef S% to 8 cents per
pound.
The retail price of beef varies so
much, according to the quality and cut
and the standing of the shop at which
it is sold, that it is unnecessary to
quote the prices that the butchers
charge. The public can fix the price
in its own locality and judge if the
price II is paying accords with the
market price of cattle.
Except in very few localities the beef
trust controls the wholesale beef mar
ket and has rules and regulations that
make 1t almost impossible for the
butchers to buy elsewhere. Any butch
er, if he wishes to, can give informa-
ton of the extortion and monopoly Of
the trust and how helpless the retailers
are to stop or evade its exactions.
Viewed from a political standpoint
the beef trust is monopoly restrain
ing trade and competition and daily
defies the antitrust law. The attempt
of the administration to control the
beef barons by asking the court to re-
strain them by injunction has been
miserable failure. There is no doubt
that If the criminal section of the anti
trust law was invoked and the principal
beef barons were convicted and i'm
prisoned, the fear Of like punishment
would effectualIy break up the COM
bine and competition and more reason
able prices would prevail.
The present supineness of the admin
istration in dealing with the trusts,
and the beef combine in particular, is
inexplicable except upon the theory
that there is a bond or affinity between
the Republican leaders and the trusts
that they dare not sever.
The beef barons rob all classes. BY
combining and refusing to bid against
each other at the principal western
stock markets they virtually dictate the
price that the farmers obtain for their
stock. BY combining they refuse to
compete in selling the dressed beef and
thus farmers. tradesmen and consum-