Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-01-23
FARMERS AID TRUSTS.
The Packers Combine Is but a
Sample Extortionist.
THERE Is NO RELIEF IN SIGHT

be the people" TO whom the politicians
appealed at election and who were
therefore the political power in the
land. Who thinks of the farmer now
as the great political factor? Who eX-
cept a few congressman who represent
purely agricultural districts? And with
them the nominating power is in the
hands of the residents of the villages
or county seats. The political wire pull
ers are the lawyers and bankers and
the county ring, and back of them all
is the railroad or trust attorney who
directs them in the interest of some
corporation or railroad. Take the great
agricultural state of Iowa, for example,
and all her representatives in congress
of both houses are lawyers except two,
who are bankers. None of these Repub-
lican leaders has been active in passing
any bill of interest to the farmers, nor
have they protested against the passage
of laws that are detrimental TO the in
terests of the farmers.
A large majority of the Republican
members of congress are at the beck and
call of the corporations, and instead of
laws being passed to control these giant
combines the last congress passed an
act that relieved the railroads of being
prosecuted under the criminal section
of the interstate commerce act. The
law passed giving the president power
to publish such proceedings of the
trusts as could be discovered, known as
the publicity law" has SO far not
been put in operation, and if it were it
would be worthless to the farmers, for
no farmer has been silly enough to in
vest his savings in the watered stocks
of the corporations.
1t is therefore not singular that the
farmers Of the agricultural states are
demanding tariff reform and that the
Iowa idea that the tariff fosters
trusts that Cypress the agricultural
communities, has become an issue. The
state grange of Iowa is aroused to the
eXactiOnS of the packers trust and the
railroads. The grangers say they can
not understand why cattle and hogs
should he cheaper and meat dearer.
The same complaint comes from Illi-
nOis, and n few days ago the farmers
around Bloomington held meeting
and urged the retail dealers to return
TO the old method of killing and dress
ing their own hogs and cattle. The re-
port of the proceedings of this meet
ing declares that
High freight rate1 and eXorbitE4
charges for yardage and feed at Chi
cago. together with the low prices that
the trust has installed for live stock,
render their fat cattle and hogs al
most worthless to them
These farmers could have added that
President Roosevelt and Attorney
General Knox have refused to bring
criminal proceedings against the pack
erS' combine. although that trust eX-
lists in direct violation of the antitrust
law. The farmers may imagine that
the suit commenced against the pack
ers for an injunction TO prevent them
from combining in restraint of trade
will, if confirmed by the supreme court,
do away with the monopoly that the
packers now have OF the stockyards
and of debating the price of cattle and
hogs and of meat to the retail dealers.
Some farmers may think that if the
suits above mentioned and the one
against the merger of the Great North
ern and Northern Pacific railroads
are decided against the combines the
trust fabric will collapse and competi-
ton again prevail No one who IN
derstands the trust question so be-
lieves. The packers trust, bad as il is,
is not the only combine that the farm
ers should investigate. The gigantic
steel trust robs them when they buy
made of iron or steel from a
% 90
nails. The Standard Oil trust charges
them such an enormous profit on kero-
sene that the trust pays As per cent in
dividends.
If a farmer builds house the lumber
and shingle trust, the lime and cement
trust, the white lead and linseed oil
trust, the window glass trust, all add
largely to the cost. When the farmer
comes to furnish his house the carpet, |
stove, pottery and cutlery |
trusts all take much more than compe- |
-ition would allow them. When it |
comes to clothing himself and family |
the farmer finds the woolens, leather, |
rubber goods and the cotton duck trusts |
have advanced the price enormously. /
He finds the luxuries of life, such as !
tropical fruit and whisky, con- /
rolled by trusts. When he packs pork |
,or his own use the salt and borax /
rusts get in their work. The sugar
rust and the cereal trust are con-
slant drain upon his resources. If his
children are sick or well the drug trust,
he castor oil trust and the baby food
rust add to his expenses, and when his
children arrive at school age the school
,ook trust and the school furniture
rust augment his taxes. If he desires
o shield his family from mosquitoes
he wire screen trust makes il more ex-
,ensive TO do so. The binding Irvine
nd harvester trusts enhance the cost
4 caring for his grain, and the paris
,reen trust leaves him at the mercy of
he potato bug unless he is willing to
'ay an exorbitant profit to the trust.
Shen he dies, the burial casket trust
axes 4 large slice from the meager I