The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1903-01-31
\. ! LAM
AND. | ! THE | TRUSTS
SENATE JoLL1Es THE PEOPLE WITH
TALK OF FAKE LEGISLATION.
This Congress. VIII Pass No Dam
Ecrous Legislation--Bill Proposed
to Stop Freight Discrimination.
Too Late to be Effective--WOrst
. Harm Has Been DOne--Trusts Are
N1arching--PeOple to Meet Them
Soon.
TRUSTS ARE DOOMED

TRUSTS ARE DOOMED
All hopes for antitrust legislation
have vanished. The radical trust bust
ers at Washington are buried in grief.
Attorney General Knox, the known
enemy of trusts; he who has used his
good offices to destroy this great
octupus, has come to the rescue Of the
senate with a compromise bill. The
compromise, it is understood, has been
framed with the full knowledge and
consent of such great corporations as
the Standard Oil Company, the United
States Steel corporation and the great
railroad systems. It is mere bait to be
thrown out to the people to satisfy
reasonable public sentiment. It is in
tended to prevent transportation
companies from giving rebate to favor
ed shippers. Supporting the compro-
mise are the corporations mentioned
above. This is not strange. They are
The little water-logged trusts may
suffer, but what do the big ones care.
This is the matter Of the survival of
the fittest. The big corporations, nurs-
ed and reared by railroad discrimina-
tions in their favor, now own the rail-
roads. Their competitors are now
welcome to the same rates that the
producing departments of the big COR
porations pay to the transportation
department. 1t does not require any
duplicate books now to run railroad,
for it is wiling that the greatest pub
Have#the wise men, who have enjoy;
IA special privileg in liz IL; and
saIzs
rhe p1undering was awful. The.ss ata-: tJl-:
ering Of riches In unheard of quaint
| tiles, with startling rapidity, by the
most corrupt of methods, and, the ap-
parent Indifference Of the people while
they. were being robbed could not con-
tinue forever. The big trusts saw the
hand writing on the wall long ago.
The little trusts see it now.,
The big fellows are so firmly i'll
trenched that they have no fear.
The little ones, still organizing, with
much water, wish to get to their in
| trenchments before the de1uge.
If railroad rate discrimination, and
the rebate system to large shippers is
responsible for the trusts, then it is
too late now to head them off: It will
be liketlocking the door after the horse
is stolen
Such a corporation as the Steel
Trust, owning iron and coal mines
transportation lines on land and water
and mills and factories does not requi.
re rebates from transportation compa
nies. They simply establish prohibitivt
rates on freight which they are will
ing to pay,-for it's like robbing Peter
to pay Paul. and through barterine
in politics, the Interstate Commerce
and State Railroad Commissions have
neither the courage nor the inclination
to reduce the rates to legitimate fig
ures,
After years of unrestricted, whole
sale determinations against the weak
the trusts now are prepared to operate
on what they claim to be legitimat
basis. BY their system Of consolida
ton, and Community of interests
plan of organiza ton they pretend t.
have solved the problem of production
Their business has become a science
The cost of production. has been 81
, greatly reduced that they: fear :. III
! competition. Freight rate discri1nina
tion does not bother them, nor woul
free trade do them much harm. ex
!, oept that it; might possibly reduce thei
profits at home, but they now hay
frightened all the other producing ma
!: .tlons, for the fact that they are sell
81 ing their products in the markets o
= the5world cheaper than any other ma
I tion can produce them. !: This too, /
the face of the fact that American la
E5bor is the best paid II theSworld:> za 4
i fs= The big trusts + welcome :publicit,
ezlWhatS harm could:tit ossthem?? :s5Iss !, |,
81 ations as to- freis ees are als
s Welcome: The trusts can anc ;:Wi
81 produ disputab Bile figures e sho,
=; hiatt hey re ! CARRYING freig ght
5s:I IS iss possible ana Day the 8
Spenses of he road