The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1904-09-23

Grated by private capital arc running
practically fun time and the employees
are all AT work Only the employe ~
the trust i- walking the streets or
working at scne mployment at a wage
wholly inadequate 20 the needs of his
family and commensurate in no sense
with the years OF service which
brought him his skill as a craftsman
and entitled him 10 a better wage On
every hand he can see the mill or fac
tory IN which he once worked. with
doors locked, fires drawn. the smoke
stacks rearing their heads toward the
slg and the buildings dust covered and
uninviung. the whole a monument TO
the greed which has throttled compe-
dtion and sent him out into the streets
20 earn a precarlous existence for him.
self and family Here is a partial rec
ord ~ the factories purchased by the
trust and closed down in order 10 les
sen the output Of the combination:
American Sheet Steel and Tinplate
Company az Muncie Organized with
local capital and afterward sold 20 the
trust Employed 900 men Number
of employees reduced TO 500 the first
year and closed in August. 1903 Has
not run a day since.
American Rolling Mil Company. Es-
tablished by Muncie capital. En-
ployed 700 men Passed into hands
OF cooperative company, and after
eight months declared a dividend OF
q per cent Sold 70 the trust and was
shut sowR in December 1903
Muncie Iron and steel Company.
known as the "Grasshopper" mill.
Was built hy Muncie capital. Sold
TO the Republic Iron and Steel com.
pany the trust Finishing department
closed for fifteen months Puddle de-
partment closed four months ago.
throwing 300 men out Of employment.
Merrins Hart Window Glass Com
pany organized with local capital and
sold 70 tie American Window Glass
company. the trust Was never oper-
ated day after the purchase but was
bought simply to get It ont Of the way
ss competitor Its 400 employees
turned eut In the cold
The MuRcie .lIsp mill. also organ
tied with local capital and sold 10 the
rust Ran d week or two at a time
after the sale. but was closed perma-
nently four months ago; 300 employees
let oft.
c. II. over Window Glass factory.
/ Sold TO the trust and closed its 300
employees turned adrift.
United Boxboard and Paper com
pany at Yorktown; bought by the pa
7 per trust and closed six weeks ago.
Employed 100 men.
The conditions at Alexandria. while
show .ng fewer factories on the list OF
the closed, are even worse because
I the towns business was almost wholly
dependent upon the factories. Prior
10 the raid OF the trust on the indus
tries rents averaged $3.50 per room or
\ $3.50 per month for five-room house,
$40 per month for fourroom house.
and so on. Now there are any num-
ber OF vacant houses in the town. rents
have fallen 10 an average OF 81 per
room a month, and many families are
getting their house rent free because
owners would rather have them occu-
pied than have them subject TO van
dalism. as would be the case If they
were vacated Here is a partial rec
ord of the closed factories and OF the
number of men thrown out Of employ
/ ment.
American Window Glass Company
closed two years ago; employed 500
mon. has done no work since that
time except ox.erimeating with blow.
ing machines
Big Four Window Glass Company;
fell into the hands of the trust and was
dismantled and 200 men forced into
the ranks OF idlars.
Republic Iron and steel company
has been CLOSED ni.e months and It's
75O employee nave been idle This Is
the trust whose Laneful influence has
been felt ~ se~a~ol nf tho cities of the