The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1905-12-29
BOMB IS HANGING
over OIL TRUST
Government Investigation o.
Standard Oil Leads to Vul-
nerable Point.
KANSAS STARTS TROUBLE
.Rocke5e''er's Main Company, 1t,
Branches and Railroad Aids, to Be
observation-disclosures in
Giant eunco Game.

Chicago, Dec: S~0.-Raymond, in a spe-
clal to the Chicago Tribune, says:
For nearly a year agents of the
United States government have been
slowly IN patiently but persistently
gathering facts and figures on which it
was hoped to base a successful attack
upon the gigantic monopoly known :ls
the Standard Oil company.
Great as this organization is. the
United States government is greater,
in spite of the boast of some of the
standard managers, and federal agents
and detectives have struck Il trail which
seems ut last to lead into the heart of
the famous system.
Sensational Report.
Following upon the footsteps OF gov
agents in Washington, Phila-
delphia, New York and other cities, 1
have learned sufficient to convince me
that during the present winter and pos
sibly not long after the holidays, there
will be presented to congress Il report
which will be far more sensational thar
that prepared against the beef trust,
and at the same time anothe report
will go to the attorney general with a
suggestion that prosecution be insti-
Iuted under the antitrust law, the in
terstate law, the Elkins law,
and the conspiracy law, not only
against the Standard Oil company and
its agents and managers, but also
against all railroad and subsidiary cor
porations' by the use of which the
Standard Oil company has controlled
the market in this country and killed
out all its competitors.
Trust Spies Run to Cover.
The work of the special agents of the
government is not entirely concluded,
but nearly SO. They have developed
enough to startle the country. and the
paid spies of the Standard Oil COM
pan already have learned this and
have begun to cover up evidence in an
ticipation. of. a criminal prosecution by
the federal government.
The investigation into the affairs of
she Standard Oil has been
conducted by Commissioner Garfield of
she bureau of corporations. 1t proceeds
in the first place under the authority of
u special resolution Of the house of rep
resentatives, but every step of the in
v~estigation has been submitted not only
to Mr.. Metcalf. secretary Of the depart
ment of and labor, but to
President Roosevelt, and both OF them
ave made valuable suggestions as to
the line of inquiry to be adopted.
Started in Kansas.
This investigation which is now
drawing to Il close was started in the
AulclSSL bull il ItiSlllOI lhoI IS-D dtIl "
It was during the height Of excitement
in regard to Kansas oil fields.
1t was shown in congress that the Oil
producers in Kansas had been made
the victims of a gigantic confidence
game on the part of the Standard Oil
company. The great monopoly en-
Outraged the farmers and promoters
generally to exploit the oil fields to the
utmost extent.
Agents of the Standard Travelled all
over the oil territory and did every
thing in their power to promote the
digging of more wells and prospecting
TOR new territory. The big corporation
bought all the oil offered at prices
which We're the top market for the
whole country. No contracts were
made, but the producers We're led to be.
1ieve the demand for crude oil was UNI
limited, and if they would only keeE
out Of the refining business and sell the
raw material to the Standard they
would have a steady marke.. ut hes:
prices.
This game was kept up. as reports
now in possession of the department
show. until the Kansas oil field practi-
cally had reached the limit of econom-
lccl development.
Put on the Screws.
Then the Standard put the screws on.
Kit controlled practically every outlet
kAiOtIl lHS AtllSd lle1u. SEuue pctlo-
r ieum is nearly worthless III itself. 1t
possessesHa real value only when re-
fined, and the Standard people knew
this, although the farmers seem to have
forgotten it.
Having gotten all the wells into oper-
alton and worked the whole territory
until II was capable of producing the
largest amount Of crude oil, the
Standard Oil company suddenly lost
interest in the situation, refused to
purchase except at a ridiculously low
price, and began Il gigantie game of
f~reezeout, according to old-time meth
DDS. The idea was, of course, to drive
the producers into bankruptcy, be-
cause there was no market for their
product, and then, when the price of
Kansas oil leases was reduced to the
starvation point, the Standard Oil COM
pany. with characteristic generosity.
would come to the rescue. not directly,
but through friends and agents., n
thus acquire possession of the Kansas
field for n ong:
It is under the Campbell resolution
adopted last February that the pend
ing inquiry is being prosecuted, and as
1 have followed cautiously along the
lire of a government inquiry, l am sat
is1ied evidence has beer developed
which will more than justify every
suggestion made in that resolution.