Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1906-05-31
OIL TRUST ORDERS
Employees Instructed to Kill COmpe-
titiOn by Destroying Business
Of Small Dealers.
RECARDLESSOF MEANS USED
rhe Standards Extensive Telegraph
System-RailrOad Discrimination
Drives Independents Out of
New England.


Cleveland, May ga total Of nine
teen witnesses were called by Inter-
state Commissioners Prouty and Glenn
ents In the Standard Oil inquiry here
Friday. Commissioners, counsel and
everybody else connected with the in
vestigation put In hard day and the
work of the two sessions was prolific
of substantial results Testimony bor-
dering on the sensational was obtained
from several witnesses. That of Geo.
l.. Lane Of Mansfield, O., a former en-
ploye of the Standard Oil company was
regarded as particularly important
According to his evidence Lane was for
about fourteen months In 1901 and
1902 employed by the Standard Oil
company for the particular purpose Of
driving all of the independent oil ped
dlers in a dozen or more of the prin-
cipal cities and towns of Northern
Ohio out of business. He said he was
employed by C. M. Lyons Of the Cleve-
land Office of the Standard Oil COM
pany to go to certain designated places
and use every means fair or foul 10
force the independents to quit. He
described the methods pursued in de-
tail.
My instructions" he said, were
to kill them and was told that If
could not do the job somebody else
would be sent to take my place.
worked in Youngstown and surround
ing small towns, Canton, Girard, War
rem, Ravenna, Massillon, Mansfield,
Elyria, Oberlin and other places In |
all of the towns with the exception of |
Youngstown the Independent peddlers |
were forced to abandon their business |
In youngstown man named William
H. Valley was encountered and despite
everything we could do he held his
trade. We gave oil away by the barrel
and tank load, but it did no good.
Valleys customers threw 1t away"
Miss Elizabeth Protzman, a steio-
grapher and bookkeeper in the Day.
ton, o., office of the Standard Oil COM
pany testified that information con-
corning the oil shipment of rivals was
brought into the ONCE by draymen and
that she made careful record of them
and gave them to her superior. John
0'Brien, general superintendent Of the
lima division Of the Buckeye Pipe
Line company, Standard concern, was
asked particularly about the Standards
telegraph system especially that part
with the pipe line company.
The inquiries succeeded In establish
Ing the general fact that the Standard
has an immense telegraph system of
It's own extending to nearly every part
If the country and that in carrying
IN its great volume of trade 1t does not
'ften require the use of the regular
ines of the two big telegraph compan-
es. The company has its own wires
eased or otherwise, operators, Offices,
blanks and other station
Try.
d. e. Byles, secretary and treasurer
I the InGapAnd0nt p0fniuN comnanv
miteo, Of OIL City, Pa, offered testi.
lony concerning the railroad rate dis
against his company, es-
ecially by the Lake Shore and Penn
Vlvania roads, which had practically
riven his company out of the entire
ew England field, and that in order
hurt their business in Indiana the
tandard agents circulated reports TO
lie effect that the Oil City company
as In reality Standard Oil concern.
rank j. Heimerich, Of Bellevue, O.,
I'D how his Independent oil business
as all but ruined by the methods Of
10 Standard. W. J. Cram, Of Mariet-
> o., testified that the Standard for
lars bounded his company, and that
10 company was finally compelled to
III Its property at a low figure. W.
Wall, president Of the Fred T.
lark company of oil dealers of Cleve-
nd, pointed out on rate sheets the ir- 4
gularities in rates to different points
the country. e. M. Gibbs, merchant
Upton, o., said he was compelled
handle the Standards oil because
10 Standards agents threatened to
art another store close by and sell
cry article he sold In competition.
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