Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-11-30
FEARFUL SLAUGHTER
The Railroads and inc Steel
 Trust Responsible.

Washington, Nov 30.-There was series of great battles last year De- tween the railroads and the people and the defeat of the people was ac' complished with horrible slaughter and 5000 dead were found on the battle fields and also 76,2S6 mained and wounded. The interstate com merce commission bulletin on rail road accidents during the year end ing June 30th last gives this alarm ing list of casualties, which are vast ly more than for the previous year. Can nothing be done to prevent this appalling loss of life and limb by the railroads? Defective rails is said to be responsible for much Of the slaughter, and the steel trust in It's anxiety to make big profits is selling defective steel rails and is, therefore, to blame as much as the railroads which accept these defective rails. The republican tariff which pro- tects the steel trust virtually offers premium on defective rails by pre- venting competition. The tariff duty on steel rails is s7.S4 per ton, and on the small quantity imported last year, which cost $23.53 per ton in the country where manufactured, was equal to an ad valorem tariff tax of S3.44 per cent. With the tariff tax added to the cost, leaving out the freight and other expenses of inn portation, the cost was $31.3S per ton on imported rails. At the same time the price the steel trust charged was $2S per ton at Pittsburg. The difference of $453 per ton between the price of steel rail abroad and here represents the extra tax the tariff protects the trust in collecting, over and above, the good round profit the trust would make without the tariff protection. There is no complaint that English and Belgium steel rails are defective; and the fact that comparatively no accidents from defective rails is attributed to that cause abroad, shows the crim- inal rapacity of the steel trust here,
 
 that corporation as a good trust and takes counsel of the steel trust magnates, Gary and Prick and Car negie. That there is bond of sym pathy, an interlocking directory. be- tween the railroads and the steel trust that leads to the purchase of these imperfectly constructed rails, is indicated by the railroad managers paying the trust price without mur- mur. If the tariff tax was abolished on steel rails there would be the in centive offered to the railroads of buying better rails at a much re- duced price. Probably not another ton of foreign rails would be import ed under free trade in rails, for the trust would either have to improve the quality and reduce the price of the rails it manufactures to meet the foreign competition, or lose the enormous rail business. AS it is of ficially recorded that the trust could produce steel rails for SIP ton, when labor and raw material was perhaps 33 per cent less than now, it will be seen that the present cost does not exceed SIG, or may be, SIS a ton. The present price being $2S a ton. As some people may urge that the price of rails hardly af- fleets the price of travel or goods, all though in the end the people pay the cost whatever it is, it may be we'll to remember that all steel products are protected by the tariff and the tariff tax on most steel products greatly exceeds the B per cent on rails, and on some steel articles exceeds 90 per cent And yet the republicans have determined to stand pat on the tariff until after the next election. and then We may expect them to continue to stand pat if that party succeeds. as such success will be considered an endorsement of the policy of protect ing the trusts. with no protest against the slaughter of the unpro- tccted people.