The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1907-05-10
TRUST HIGH PRICES
COST OF COMMODITIES ARTIFl.
cIALLv INCREASED.
At Least rs Per Cent. OF the Advance
Is Tax Paid TO Monopolies
Protected by the
Tariff.

Is now so high that 1t Is most likely
the highest point has been reached
for this year and probably for year
or two to come. 1t is therefore Of the
utmost Importance for consumers to
understand why prices have advanced
so rapidly since 1897, and especially
those whose incomes have not In
creased In proportion to the cost OF
living. That a great percentage Of the
increase In prices has been artifi1ially
created by allowing the trusts a mo-
nopoly through tariff protection is
plainly shown by the fact that as
soon as the Dlngley bill was enacted
In 1897 organization Of trusts. com.
bines and pools was accomplished on
al enormous scale and began to boost
the prices of their products and have
constantly increased prices to tho
| present day. II you have saved your
old bills for groceries, dry goods, etc.
for 1896 or 1897, and compare them
| with your bills Of to-day you will see
| that the average increase In prices Is
! over 30 per cent Has your income
increased In the same proportion, or
are the trust high prices compelling
! you TO economize? AS the question
| of high tariff or low tariff is q
| political issue that must be decided at
the coming national election you. OF
course, want to be sure of the facts,
SO that you can vote for the system
that Is best for your pocket. As but
few people keep old bills but destroy
them after a year or two, II is well to
have the actual statistics of the In
crease OF prices to arrive at correct
solution of the question. What Is
known as "Dun's Index Number" Is
recognized officially as the most per.
feet statistics on the rise and fall OF
wholesale prices of all the most i'm.
portant articles of general consump-
ton, and gives the value of the aver
age amount used per capita,
On July /. 1897, Dun's Index Mum
Der was s72.455. On March l, 1907.
1t was $l09.9t3 and on March i, 1906,
II was s104.204. The price level has
therefore increased SIS per cent, dur.
ing the past year and Sit per cent.
during the past ten years.
All this enormous increase In prices
Is not, however. chargeable to the
tariff protecting the trusts, for In Eng
land, which has tariff for revenue
with comparatively no protection to
her manufacturers, the prices of com
modlties have increased over % pei
cent. during the same period. This
increase In England Is charged t
gold imitation and the rapidly depreci
atIng value OF that metal measured II
commodities. As the effect Of the
increased production of gold Is world
wide, gold imitation here has had .h'
came effect as elsewhere, and there
fore 25 per cent. of our advance II
| prices is due to II. This leaves owe
! 25 pr cent. of the increase In price,
he/e chargeable TO some other cause
and as the increase commenced II
1897 soon after our trust-protectini
tariff bill became the law. II Is con
ceded by the most eminent politica
economists, and not denied by tn
honest Republican standpatters. tina
the protection the trusts enjoy ha
A allowed them to artficially advanc
y the price of their products beyond tn
= natural increase In prices through tn
A depreciation In gold
a This increase of prices is the mos
. important part of the tariff Issue, fo
n It directly affects the spending capa'
70 ity of every family, especially thos
"a whose incomes and wages have nj
kept pace with the advance IN price
- As the railroad interests have dete
- mined to reduce their expenditures c
- far as possible, there will be a goo
many men thrown out OF work, and {
- these seek other occupations the
. competition is bound to reduce II
=, wages of that class of labor. The les
"A ening OF the demand for railroad an
" building material will naturally lea
- to reduction in the price of tho!
., articles. which. added to the loss
?" wages of the men thrown out OF wor
-. must lead to reduced consumption
4. products, and this will prevent for
- time prices advancing and. indee
w. some reduction In the price of tho
:. articles for which there is less
"A mand.