The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1905-02-11

get money without earning it unless
some other man earns money without
getting 1t. Never was truer saying. In
all countries and in all ages there have
been men whose sole labor consisted in
plotting and scheming how to get some
thing for nothing, how to get money
without earning it, how to get their
daily bread by the sweat of anothers
brow. Centuries ago these men were
called robber-barons; they lived in
moated and turreted castles and when
they wanted meat and grain and wine
they let down the draw-bridge, crossed
the moat into the peasants fields and
took with the mailed fist what spoils
they chose; then they returned to their
castles and reveled with wine, women
and song until ready for another foray
into the valleys below.
The castles overlooking the Rhine
are tenantless now; no robber-barons
now trample over peasants fields; no
bands of armed retainers drive off
cattle and cart away grain and wine.
But the difference is one Of method
alone. Now, as in the Olden days,
some men still get money without
Of plain people, still earn money with
out being allowed to keep it. The
desire to get something for nothing,
the desire to live on the labor of Others
produced the robber-barons of the
Rhine; and it is the same desire to-day
which produces that plentiful crop of
boodlers to be found in American Ma
tional, State and Municipal govern
ments. The post-office scandals afford
an illustration of national Doodle;
Pennsylvania under the Quay regime
! furnished specimen of state cor
| ruption, while St. Louis presents a
striking example of rottenness in GER
| tain departments of city administra-
| ton. The streets of modern city Of
! fer a far richer spoil than was ever
offered a Rhine robber-baron by any
German peasants fields. The monop-
oily of furnishing gas, telephones or
transportation to the 100000 inhabitants
of city like St. Louis is worth mil
! lions of dollars; the possessor of that
monopoly need neither toll nor spin,
! yet he may have a thousands times
more luxury than all the robber-barons
Of the middle ages. TO obtain this
| luxury, to enjoy greater riches than
! we're enjoyed by any king or empor-
err of the past, all one need do it to OBJ
| tain a few franchises; these franchises,
worth a thousand times more than a
robber- baron could steal in a lifetime
are not obtained with clubs, maces and
battle-axes, welded by hired mara
uders, as was done five centuries ago;
the methods now employed are equally
immoral as the methods of the past
but they are less spectacular and they
are veneered with responsibility and
corpora ton law. Our modern robber.
barons wear silk hats instead of he'll
NETS; they don Prince Albert frocks
instead of coats of chain-armor; they
live in fashinoble mansions instead Of
in turreted castles; and they drive tt
church on Sundays and found colleges
and libraries with the money they
purloin, instead Of spending it or
drunken orgies as their robber-baror
ancestors did few centuries ago
Yes, our modern robber-barons are
very, very respectable indeed. They
are our "prominent" citizens, ou1
business men, our "Captains Of In
dustry''-and here is an example of thu
way they go about getting something
for nothing, making themselves ricf
by getting millions of money they d.
not earn, thereby preventing milior
other men from obtaining the none,
which they do earn.
Mr.. Charles H. Turner, St. Loui:
millionaire, "prominent" citizen AM
"Captain of Industry" was presiden
Of the Suburban street-railway com
pany which, by reason Of it's monopol!
of number of miles of St. Louis
streets, was worth 100000. Mr.. Tur
ner saw a chance to double the valu
of his part, by the simple expedien
of getting monopoly of some NOR
miles of st, Louis streets; and so h
asked "Colonel' Butler, the acknowl
lodged Boss of st. Louis, how muc1
he would charge to induce the Hous
Of Delegates and the City Council t.
rob the people of this 100000 fran
chise and bestow it upon Turner an,
his frineds. COL Butler said his fee
would be $145,000 and Turner, thinking
that too much to pay for stolen good
worth $3,000,000, went to a. Mr.. Phil
Stock who agreed to do the job TO
$135, 900, $4,000 less than Butler de
manded. The boodlers in St. Louis
local legislature, being like Turne
and other highly respectable prom
fnent' citizens in the matter of wantin
something for nothing, of wanting t
get money without earning it Qegitin
ately), readily agreed to rob the peopl
of a 100000 franchise and turn til
I proceeds over to Turner and associate
J provided they could be sure of the
share Of the spoils. Butler they kne'
. and trusted; Stock they did not kno
and so they insisted that he pay tn
$135, 900 in advance. Stock refused I
, do this but he finally agreed to p,
! the money, in safety vault box whel
it was to be called for when the frar
chise was granted. Stock kept or
key to this box the other key wa
given to representative of the boot
lers, and the bank agreed not to pei
NIT the box to be opened except in tn
presnce Of both parties and by tn