Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-02-06
Mr.. CORTELYOU DEFIED
Hundreds of Illegal Trusts Laugh
at the New Bureau.
FLAUNT THEMSELVES IN IT'S FACE

Bureau of Industries Has slept One
Year-No Sign of Life Yet-Plentyl
of Trusts. but No Publicity In Sight
Where to Find the Trusts - IRON
Age Full of Them.
The bureau of industries of the new
department of commerce, which was
formed last year by the Republicans to-
demoliSh the trusts by publishing the,
facts about them, has slept nearly one
year, and there are no surface indica-
tions that its Rip Van Wrinkle slumbers'
are nearing an end. The little Informal
ton about this bureau published in the
annual report of the department OF
commerce indicates that there will be-
no publicity of trust transactions until
after the presidential election.
But the trusts are not asleep. They
are having Il riOtOus time around this
sleeping, doing bureau. Hundreds Of
them are openly and daily plunderingI
the public in defiance of all law. Pick
up almost any trade paper, and you
will find details of trusts that clearlyl
are illegal both in the eyes of the Sher-l
man antitrust act and of the common
law. The steel, coal, tobacco and scores
of other great trusts are most certainly
illegal, but the trust attorney general
refuses to act upon the facts put into
his hands more than Il year ago about
these great criminals, although eminent
lawyers declare that these facts estab-
lish the illegality of these trusts. Per-
haps the bureau of Industries recog-I
nizes that it is useless to obtain facts
that the attorney general does not want
and would not use if he had them.
To show how easy it is to find trusts,
unless you are as blind as n bat at mid
day, the following extracts are quoted
from an article in the Iron Age of Jan.
Z, entitled The Pittsburg Iron Trade
In 1903"
Price Agreements.--In 1903 there
were in existence price agreements of
four of the principal fixed lines of IRON
and steel, these being plates, structural
material, steel bars and shafting. In
addition the rail pool was maintained
all through the year, and the billet pool
W as ACNiNNu III A(hAihS AhN
year the price of beams was main
tanned steadily ON the basis OF LOO
cents up to 10 inch, and plates were the
same price.
1.-The price of steel bars was main
tanned steadily at 1.60 cents, Pittsburg,
until November, when, owing TO the
lower prices on pig iron and steel and a.
very light demand, it was deemed adj
visable by the Steel Bar association To-
reduce prices, and accordingly a cut Of
$6 was made, the price being reduced
from 1.60 to 1.30 cents. At the samel
time and for practically the same rea-
sons the Shaft.ng association made a.
reduction of about 10 per cent in price,
of shafting.
"These price agreements have been
renewed for 1904 and will continue in
force all through the year unless some
conditions come up which,
would make it advisable to terminates
them, but this Is hardly likely.
THE Steel Rail association has main
tanned the price of standard sections
all through the year at SOS at mill, and
in spite of general expectations of re-
duction we understand that the mills
1904 delivery.
Owing TO depression i'm the steel
trade, which started i'm the summer
the price of steel billets stead
lily declined and the trade became de-
nOralZed, some large sales having
been made to leading consumers at
very low figures. Owing to these condi-
lions the billet manufacturers deemed
It advisable TO revive the billet pool for,
the purpose of steadying the market,
and this was done in July. The price,
IF Bessemer billets was fixed at $27i
and open hearth at S2S. 1t was very,
soon demonstrated, however. that the
trade would not take hold at these
prices. and at a meeting of the billet
pool in November a cut of 81 was qdeI
n Bessemer and 81 in open hearth, thel
price of Bessemer and open hearth bill
cts being put at $23. Pittsburg. On Dec
Is a meeting Of the billet pool was held
n New York. and this price was re-
lewed for all OF 1904"
What fun the trusts are having! What
| picnic the people would have IL the
bureau of Industries would wake up
md get busy Will it and the attor-
ley generals Office ever be run in the
interest of the people and against the
trusts? BYRON W. HOLT.
Roses as Rent.
l. Il