The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1904-11-10
TRUSTS.
mo. 81

facture and trade are the ones, NOR
than any others, that are wipini
out individual effort. An ind
vidual or partnership. can and unit
recent years did build and operate
cotton mill, wooden mill, o
tobacco factory and in fact, factorie
and manufacturing plants of ever,
description. But under the moderl
tendency of combination this stat
of things is rapidly passing away
A trust is formed, a monopoly
created, no new plants are created
old ones are purchased and con
solidated under one management
some are closed and instead OF
many plants doing business in many
places under many different man
agements, the business is consoli
dated in few places under one
management, production is reduced
to enhance prices, the number of
employers reduced, the number of
employees limited and the former
owners become agents for or clerks
and operatives in the great institu.
ton or 60 broke.
The same is true of trade.
Formerly when a man wanted a
suit of clothes he went to & tailor
or clothing store, for his shoes to
shoemaker, for his hat to a halter,
his groceries he purchased of a
grocer; now he.goes to some great
institution controlled by corpora
ton and buys all at one place and
the profits of his trade which were
formerly divided among many in
dependent dealers, goes to a single
concern and the former owners of
the numberless small concerns are
wage-workers in the large institu-
ton or are hustling for job.
In the last two lines of business,
corporations and trusts have not as
yet entered the field and we have
no farmers, lawyers, doctors,
preachers or teachers trusts and the
agriculturist and the professional
man is about the only Independent
individuality we have left in this
country.
l have endeavored fairly and
without prejudice to make a non
partisan statement of the benefits
and evils of trusts. l am aware
there is much difference of opinion
on the subject. Mems interests,
financial and political, are the
greatest factor III shaping their
opinions. This does not so1nd
nice, but it is the truth aud truth
never sets her words to music while
error always plays the fiddle as he
sings his sentiments. do know
in common with every other dis
interested individual that the
general public believes and knows
that this general formation of trusts
is fraught with much more danger
and detriment than benefits to the
public veal and welfare, and any
legitimate means or method of
checking their growth, or controll-
ing their operations would be well
coined.
There are only three ways by
which this can be accomplished and
These are Dy'-
Competition,
Non-patronage,
Legislation.
A trust in order to be successful
must have full control of the COM
modify in which it operates in the
country in which it's operations are
carried on. Monopoly is essential
to it's existence, if a monopoly can.
not be obtained it is impossible to
trust the commodity. A plurality
of trusts in the same line is an
absurdity. Any competition it
meets must come from the outside
countries and hence, whenever a
protective tariff in any way binders
competition to trust made articles
it should at once be removed.
Every consumer not only has the
right to know out of what the
article he consumes is made but
who makes it. There is a general
feeling against trusts and every
commodity put upon the market
ought to be marked in some manner
SO that the public can distinguish
the trust made from the non-trust,
SO they can purchase the latter if