The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-08-25
| ocAL TRUST RoReERIEs.

4
Every Salt Lake householder has
known for some time that the cost of
living here was abnormally high, even
in these times of abnormal prices.
Hardly a single article of household
consumption has escaped a mysterious
influence which has made its cost ex-
travagant; and in comparison with
other places of about the same class it
has been the most expensive city in
this country to live in.
Now it develops with reasonable GER
tainty that the mysterious influences
which have achieved this phenomenal
result are only the combinations of
tradesmen operating under secret
agreement by which they are bound to
charge excessive prices or, in more di-
rect phrase, rob the public. The
wholesaler has his agreement with
supply houses and with his supposed
competitors; the retailer has an agree
ment with the wholesaler and his fell
low retailers; the little retailer has an
agreement with the larger houses; and
all the agreements are criminal con-
spiracies in restraint of trade, Operat-
ing in defiance of a state law regard
ing trusts.
In good many cases the little deal
er has had no recourse but to join the
cOnspiratOTs. If he was a butcher and
attempted to sell meat below the COM
bination's fixed price, his meat supply
would be cut off; if he dared to sell
groceries or butter or any other article
of consumption in his line below the
fixed figure, he would be made to suf-
fer. Obviously the dealer as well as
the consumer has been coerced, robbed
and penalized at every turn of the
road. The price of butter today is
practically prohibitive. although there
is no good reason for it; the winter
will see another advance to satisfy
the greed of the butter trust. The
CommOnest needs of the masses are
made the basis of as cruel and rapa-
cious a combination as the Standard
Oil itself, though operating on much
smaller scale.
Nor are these local combination linn
tied to the sellers of food. The plumb
ers' agreement is suspiciously like a
trust arrangement; the electrical sup
ply houses used to be, if they are not
now. in a most harmonious frame of
mind as to prices and working sched-
ules; the lumber houses never have
had any difficulty about competition
that would interfere with profits, and
the more important of the job printing
houses exchange information as to bids
on large contracts.
In the face of these conditions it is
no wonder Salt Lake has a reputat ton
for expensive living. The people sit
calmly by and let their tradesmen
make prices at their own sweet will.
and then wonder why things cost so
much. The plan has worked so ad-
mirably-for the cOnspiratOrs-that
they have made no effort at concealing
their scheme of late, and have extend
ed its scope to embrace not only the
city, but the whole state.
Direct evidence OF conspiracy or ViO-
lation of the antitrust law is not easy
to get. but if the county and state at
torneys We're TO investigate ever so
specifically they would find enough
to warrant prosecution of the more
fragrant offenders and earn the graft
tude of a victimized public. Even if
no actual convictions ensued a real in
vestigatiOn would stir up such vigor-
Gus public opinion against the COM
binations that it would discourage the
more fragrant robberies and hold prices
down to somewhere near a decent,
honest level