The Sisseton weekly standard. (Sisseton, Roberts County, S.D.) 1892-1929, 1906-01-05
OIL TRUST SPIES
THWART THE LAW
STANDARD OIL SECRET SERVICE
THREATENS GOVERNMENT
AGENTS..
RELATING IS JURY CHARGE
BURLINGTON ROAD AND TWO
OFFICIALS INDICTED AT
CHICAGO.
Chicago, Dec, 81. = Raymond, in
Philadelphia special to the Tribune.

says:
We are bigger than the govern
ment. Standard Oil is stronger than
the United States. We own the SEN
ate and the house. If you pursue
your Investigations beyond the point
necessary to fool the public we will
have you removed. We can secure the
instant deposition of the secretary of
commerce and labor, Mr.. Metcalf, and
the commissioner of corporations, Mr..
Garfield. If you prosecute us in the
slightest degree You will be out of
your job, and if you keep at the bust
ness you will find out that what we
say is absolutely true"
Truly Gigantic System"
This is the kind of talk which has
been handed out to the agents of the
government at every stage in the
game. The first thing they learned
was that the Standard Oil company,
as has been said of it, was a great
system
Agents of the government were con-
fronted at the outset by evidence Of
the existence of extraordinary secret
machinery of the Standard Oil com
pany The discovered that 1t covers
the United States and probably ex-
tends into foreign countries. It was
organized and operated in the first
place for the express purpose Of pre-
venting jobbers and retailers from
cutting prices.
Government agents have shown.
and have so reported to the secretary
of comJnerce and labor, that whoever
sells a shade off the market price is
invariably caught and punished &C
cording to the code of the system
Scope Is Startling.
This secret service is said to be
more far-reaching than anything
which has ever been known before in
this country Government agents have
been aghast at it's extent For awhile
they were stupefied and frightened by
it's threats. At every stage of the in
vestigation the agents of the govern
ment have been thwarted by the ma
lign influence of people who are not
supposed to be associated with the
Standard Oil company, but who are.
none the less ready to do its bidding
This secret service system was con
trived for the express purpose of en-
abling the Standard Oil company to
control and probably to obliterate in
dependent organizations.
"Bigger Than Roosevelt"
Now and again, when the govern
ment agent ran up against an indie
pendent company he was surprised to
find out that in every case there was.
a fear of the vengeance of the Stand
ard Oil company.
Rockefeller is bigger man than
Roosevelt" was the constant cry of
the Standard Oil people, not only in
New York. but in Illinois, Missouri
and Kansas.
There was reason for this cry, and
the secret reports OF the United States
agents establish that fact 1t has been
shown that the Standard Oil company
is the parent of secret service which
is far. and away better and bigger
than the secret machinery of the
United States government.
Creatures of Oil Trust.
The government is now in posses
sion of evidence to show that 'inde-
pendent" Oil companies have been or
ganized in almost every big shipping
center of the United States. These,
supposed independent companies
are in each case creatures OF the.
Standard Oil company.
Crushing out competition by means
of dummy company is not entirely
new device, but it is dangerous, be-
cause the Standard Oil company has
originated and applied it so as to af-
feet commercial conditions all over
the country.
Burlington Road Indicted.
Chicago, Dec. 80. - The federal
grand jury late yesterday returned an
indictment against the Chicago, Bur-
lington & Quincy railroad, Darius
Miller, first vice president, and c. G.
Burnham, foreign freight agent, on the
charge of granting railroad rebates.
The indictment charges that the re-
bates were all granted to the United
States Steel Produce Export Company
of New York, a subsidiary company to
the United States Steel company. All
dictment alleges
Rebates Were Paid,
were from six cities which are named
in the indictments, to Vancouver, B.
G. Twenty-six separate offenses are
charged.
The indictment further alleges that
by an agreement between the defend
ants and a number of connecting rail-
roads, a Joint tariff was made and
filed with the interstate commerce
commission. The freight rates were
paid, it is declared in the indictments,
according to the tariff, but afterwar1
a rebate of about 80 per cent was al
lowed to the shipper. In all eases the
United States Steel Produce Export
company was the recipient Of the
money, according to the indictment.