The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1906-05-16
In Message TO Congress presl
dent Roosevelt Brands as
COLASSaL ROBBERS
The Standard Oil Combines. Which HI
Says Has Enriched Itself by Crimes.
Commissioner Garfisld's Proof
of MouopoIy's Guilt the
Basis of Cha.g S.

President Roosevelt, in 9 message
to Congress Friday ia3ulged in Sc
we're derunciation OF the Standard on
monopoly, charging it and the railroads
Of the county with all manner OF Of
fenses against the Interstate CONNER
&c and Anti. r :bate laws. The charges
against this vicious monopoly were
timed psychologically with the ap
preaching vote in the Senate on the
railr' ad rate bill, the Presidents pet
measure, which he is determined shal!
20 on the Federal statute books. Bit
this belated laying bare OF the SaQrant
and persistent violation OF the law o.
the r ,ckefeller monopoly Is t"o years
behind the times.
In 1904 the same charges against
the O combine were made BY Con
gresham William Randolph Hearst
in all bis newspapers, and in Dscem
Der Of last year he proposed rened;
in the shape OF bill to increase the
powers OF the Interstate Commerce
Commission ane to crate an Intel
state C5n merce Court, which would
aave made impossible q continuation
Of such defarca Of the United Statis
laws.
The bill served as a model for the
Esch-Towrsen6 bill, and was killed By
the Administration. For years the
Governm ns has paid no attention to
the repeaIed acsu ations aga1ass the
STANDARD Oh Company, whose crimes
are cslmly enunera led By the Pfesi-
dent and Commissioner CART I'D to-
day.
Desp'te the suoerlativeuess OF the
deEulc. l.osv q. j :ctivSs ussd by The
President and Commissioner Ga! fold
which ace use the STANDARD Oil monop
| oily Of div=ys ana sundry lt,nses
sgaiust Federal laws. the D parameat
of Justice, in slnoss the sans b cath,
announces that it will try to prosecute
ONLY under the Anti-R sbate laW. OF
sn!c1 the maximum penalty for con-
vicSion is on..y q fine OF q sum. Waich
st most would be Considered paltry o3
the millionaire d dfendants.
In other words, sh uld all the
Standard Oh officials, al the railroad
chiefs OF the country be convicted,
Slley wculi merely have to scratc !:
their pens across the bottom Of cntcss
Tor sums in6nitesimal as compared
with the proiSs sseursd from tue lie
gal aud secret rates and rebates,
and 60 on committing the sane
crimes against the laws Of the land
Then, by putting the scress uGdes
the price-llst anew ard tack1ng cent
Or two on to the rate for oil, the tluIt
would get all its money back Kluh
enormous interest.
Commissioner Garia!o;s invest:ga
ttons unearthed undenisble prof Ct
the guilt Of tee Oh Trust and the
raj roads, and his specific charges
formed the basis TOR the Presidents
message and recommendations to Con.
gress.
he WINGED no woods and used no
emasculated phrases 10 denouncing
the STANDARD Oil Company as VIC
| tous business organ zatton, reared upon
the loot from illegal methods Of doing
business.
he accused the officials Of the COM
pany Of criminal methods and strip
ped the fabric Ct their boasted organ
| izstton bars; showed it to be mass
of eruption; a combinatinn defiant
OF every law OF the land, and even Of
decent business ameniai5<; hesrtless
and wynton destroyer OF competitors
and a msnanca to the country.
Thr revelations in the report OF
Com missioner Garfield are almost IS
founding. They expose, 50 far IS the
STANDARD Oh Company Is corcerned,
exactly the same methods that vii.
liam r. Hearst has uncovered In the
coal roads trust and the alliance bs-
tween the Sugar Trust and the great
railroads. It is significant to note
that Commissioner Gar6eld's exposure
tlluminates the situation with exam
pies OF precisely the ssme kinds Of
rebates, refunds and other Illegal faV,
OF as the coal cases and the sugar cases
have developed.
In other words, it tends to prove
what Congressman Hearst and many
writers and investigators have con
tended for 8 long time-that the
Standard created the system and per-
tected it and the coal roads and the
Sugar Trust and the other trusts are
only imitotors and followers Of the
mos gigantic trust Of them all.
Seldom has organized capital been
so ruthlessly pilloried. Commission
OF Garfield presents an array Of facts
and figures that would convince the
most skeppticsl and he does 1t with
clearness that a child could under
stand.
He nos only convicts the Oh Trust
Of fragrant and persistent violations
Of the law, but accuses its officials of
deliberate lying. Hs says that at
the beginning OF the investigation the
officials OF the Standard Oh said the
company had not obtained and was
then not obtaining secret rebates
from the railroads. BE then procseos
TO show tEat the company has hab-
itually received and ls s5ill receiving
such rebstef, and he cites case after
case in proof.
Probably no more opportune time
could have been elected by the Presi-
dent to send the report to Congress
just es the Senate is about to begin
voting On the railroad rate bill. The
President believes the factf revealed
byGsmmisSioner Garfield conetitute
the best argument yet presented that
the ynty effective remedy for secret
Relating and open preferential ratings
Ess through government regulation,
~tth ONLY slch restrictionS aSara nec-