Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1904-01-20
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FARM rs nnd the Trusts.
OF THE DAY !

Farmers and the Trusts.
The farmers of the country used to
be 1.-THE people" to whom the politi-
clans appealed at election, and who
were therefore the political power in
the land. Who thinks of the farmer
now as the great political factor eX-
cept few Congressman Nwho repre-
sent 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-pullers are the lawyers and
bankers and the county ring, and back
of them all Is the railroad or trust at
torney who directs them in the inter-
est of some corporation or railroad.
Take the great agricultural State of
Iowa, for example, and all her repre-
sentatlves in Congress of both houses
are lawyers, except two, who are
bankers. None of these Republican
leaders have been active in passing
any bin of interest to the farmers, nor
have they protested against the pas
sage of laws that are detrimental to
the interests of the farmers. About
the same condition of affairs exists in
all the Western States.
The large majority of the Republi-
can members of Congress are Mt the
beck and call of the corporations, and
instead of laws being passed to control
these giant combines the last Congress
nnccnl n pf t1,nt no
roads 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 IL 1t We're 1t would be
worthless to the farmers. for no
farmer has been silly enough to invest
his savings In the watered stock 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 exactlons of the packers trust
and the railroads. The Changers say
they cannot understand why cattle
and hogs should be cheaper and meat
dearcr.
The same complaint comes from IL
linois, and few days ago the farm
ers around Bloomington held meet
ing and urged the retail dealers to
return to the old method of killing
and dressing their own hogs and cat
tie. The report of the Proceedings of
this meeting declares that:
High freight rates and exorbitant
charges for yardage and feed at Chi
cago, together with the low prices
that the trust has installed for live
stock, renders their fat cattle and hogs
almost worthless to them"
These farmers could have added
that President Roosevelt and Attorney
General Knox have refused to bring
criminal proceedings against the
packers combine, although that trust
exists in direct violation of the al,fii.
trust law. The farmers mayifnMginr
/ that the suit commenced 1igainst the
packers-fUf an injunction to prevent
them from combining in restraint of
trade, WILL If confirmed by the SUI
preme Court, do away with the monop-
oily that the packers now have of the
ctno1y W. rdc nd rf <oti nj
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
Northern and Northern Pacific Rail
roads are decided against the combines
that the trust fabric will collapse and
competition again prevail. No one
who understands the trust question SO
believes. The packers trust, bad as ii
is, is not the only combine that the
farmers should investigate. The eli.
gantnc steel trust robs them when
they buy anything made of iron OF
steel, from shovel to fence wire, or
n pound of nails. The Standard Oil
trust charges them such an enormous
profit OH kerosene that the trust pays
45 per cent in dividends
II farmer builds house the lum.
Der and shingle trust, the lime and
cement trust, the white lead and lin
seed oil trust, the window glass trust,
all add largely to the cost. When the
farmer comes to furnish his house the
carpet, oil cloth, stove, pottery and
cutlery trusts all take much more
than competition 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 controlled by trusts. When he
packs pork for his own use the salt
and borax trust get in their work. The
sugar trust and the cereal trust are
a constant drain upon his resources.
| If his children are sick, or well, the
drug trust, the castor oil trust and the
baby food trust add to his expenses,
and when his children arrive at school
age the school book trust and the
school furniture trust augment his
taxes. If he desires to shield his fam
lily from mosquitoes the wire screen
trust makes it more expensive to do
SO. The binding Irvine and harvester
trust enhance the cost of caring for
his grain, and the paris green trust
leaves him at the mercy of the potato
bugs unless he is willing to pay an
exorbitant profit to the trust. When
he dies the burial casket trust takes
a large slice from the meager savings
he has left for his widow and chill
dren
Nearly all of these trusts and hun
dreds of others that prey upon the
farmer or whoever consumes their
products are protected in their monop.
oily by the tariff, which tax ranges
from % to 100 per cent, and yet the
Republican leaders, from President to
Congressman, neither recommend or
| iptnnd IN raform 'cIyoh nm ipinuitp