Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-01-10

NO. o.
THE LIFE OF TRUSTS
We're 1t Not for the Railroads Coop
Grafton the Trusts Would Not
Flourish As They Do.
In 1870, when the Stand ard Oil Com
pany was organized, FIVE years after
Mr.. Rockefeller had become actively
ide ntiied with oil refining, there were
many prosperous refneries in Cleve-
land. For few years they attributed
the phenomenal growth of the Stand
ard to exceptional business manage
ment. But when as their profits
shrank smaller and smaller they saw
its prosperity continue unabated, they
began to suspect something, and then
learned that the railroads had been
returning Is of every 40 cents paid in
freight to the Rockefeller company.
The protest, of the other re6neries
finally secured an agreement from the
railways that they could have the same
rebate it they shipped the same
amount OF Oil with the same regularity.
But this meant ruin to the small COM
panies. Their restle ssness and the
uncertainties of the situation sug-
gested the next step, the consolidation
of enough interests to control the out
put of oil. Thus the larger Standard
Oil company has evolved and with it
one OF the most astonishing shipping
contracts in the history of railroading
"a contract signed by W. 81. Wander
bilt, w. 81. Clark, Jay Gould, Gen.
George b. Mcclellan and Tom Scott
in behalf of the great railway systems
tapping the oil regions. By tho terms
| Of this contract tho Sta odard Oil COM
psny got . rebate in cash Of $l.o6 on
every $2.56 paid in freight, and also .
| cash bonus Of 81 o6 on every $2.56
paid by its competitors, and as an evil
dence of good faith the railroads
turned over all shipping bills for oil,
thereby keeping the Standard COM
pany informed of how much it's COM
petitors were shipping and to what
customers.
This is not the story of the upbuild-
ing OF legitimate industry. Neither
is it the story of competition distanced
by superior talent, methods or organ
lzatlon. 1t is the story of a con-
spiracy, planned and executed under
| directions from the presiding genius
| of the oil business of the United States.
John D. Rockefeller. If the history
OF the other great mOnopolies which
have fourished as the Standard Oil:
| company has, were written, in ninety
nine out of every hundred cases it.
| would be found that their supremacy
has been gained through the same
| cOnniv ance of railway managers and
the same abuse of shipping privileges.
| Railway Determinations has had more
to do with the success of trusts and
monopoIies in tho United States than
all other causes put together.-Dea
Moines Register and Leader
That last sentence ii the a5ove Clip
ping emphasizes the contention of the
peoples party, which twelve years
ago took the position that the rail-
roads were the mainstay of monopoiies
and that the only way of removing the
prop was to nationalize the roads.
The Standard Oil trust is the largest
and earlies; OF the trust built up by
railroad discrimination, but it is typi-
cal OF them all. Without that means
at hand for crushing competition the
nonopolies would at least have to fear
the shadow of potential competition.
They would know that as soon as they
raised prices enough to make large
profits there would be others ready to
embark in the same business IN order
to reap share of those profits. But
with the largest trusts owned by men
who are also largely interested in the
principal railroad systems of the
country, few capitalists will risk their
money in competition with these men
who control the means of distribution.
For twenty years or more the ma
t1ona1 and state governments have
made attempts to regulate the rail-
roads so as to get rid of this trust
breeding discrimination. The at
tempts have generally ended in total
failures. Legislators friendly to the
roads have in many instances sue
ceeded in making the laws so vague
as to enable the violators to avoid
them or else they have been so con-
structed as to become unconstitutional.
The vast political power of the roads
and the allied monopolies have placed
in the executive Offices men friendly
to the trusts, and thus the laws have
been allowed to become dead letters.
This dangerous power in the hands
of men who never go to sleep at their
post, as the voters so frequently do
after spasmodic effort to correct
wrongs, will be in the way of every
reform in that line. The only way to
get rid OF that power in our political
world is to end private ownership of
railroads. In the guerrilla warfare
of attempted regulations the easily
modified troops of the monopolists
will wear out the forces of the people.
In a pitched battle for ending the sys-
tenn completely the people may be
reused enough to overcome the much
| smaller force Of tho nnnooi}i0p