Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-10-30
MILKMEN'S TRUST
Are Farmers Using Same Meth
 OdS aS Standard Oil Co.

Whether they know it or not, 1t
 would appear from remarks heard
 upon the streets that the Waterbury Milkmen's association stands in dan
 ger of being haled into court and
 asked to explain what right they
 have to get together and create con-
 dition of affairs which affects the
 pockets of the consumers. According
 to a decision rendered within the past few days by Judge Andrews of New
 York, where two or more persons
 combine to shut off competition,
 their conduct comes within the mean
 ing of the law, so that the milknen
 are lawbreakers in the same sense IS
 are the Standard Oil trust fellows
 and there ought to be somebody in
 authority to bring them to halt. /
 It is but fair to concede that man
 has a right to charge as much as he
 pleases for the product of his own
 cows, but it is quite different thing
 when this man goes to somebody else
 in the same line of business, wins
 him to his way of thinking, and then
 passes along to another and so on
 until every person who has milk to sell is brought into. one body and
 then all enter into an ageement not
 to dispose of their stock unless they get their price, even though the figure
 might be outrageously high. If there is no limit to what can be done in this respect, what is there to prevent a few men from cornering bread- stuffs and putting a price upon every thing that would push the necessities of life out of reach of people of modest means? Nothing, perhaps, except the fear of general uprising among the masses, and that is what we are coming to unless the powers that be take decided stand upon this trust business. ,
 It is not fair to blame the milk men. because they are simply keep ing up with the procession. It is the principle of the thing wherein lies the trouble, and while this is we'll known. it is hedged in 80 that it is quite difficult to cope successfully with it.
 What are you going to do," re- marked q farmer to reporter "when men come to you and tell you that they can show you how to make more money at greatly reduced cost and labor? My father worked this place and his father before him. They never made much out of it, and while Q l have plugged away at it for nearly forty years myself. I haven't much to show for it. I know conditions were different in Waterbury and nelghboring towns in fathers time, the people were not here and the demand was far from what it is to- day. But leaving these things aside and speaking of nothing outside the present conditions there is no use denying the fact that it costs more to produce milk now than it did ten or fifteen years ago. Feed is great deal higher and labor costs more. Then again beef commands a better price and many prefer to sell their calves for veal than raise them. All these things enter very largely into the price of the article. but the real tO'--S '' 'h"' III luStdutpS JD0s demand is greater than the supply and whenever this is so prices are bound to be at the top notch. We have no trouble disposing of all the milk we can handle at the new sched- lle of prices. We feel that it~is worth that to consumers. nm aware that some can afford to sell milk cheaper than others, but even SO. every producer and every dealer will fall in line with the higher price advocates and the limit has not vet been reached"
 This is a fair statement of the posi- ion taken by dealers and producers. md leaves no way out of the di. emma to customers except to come town with the dust or get down to and maintain a cow ar a ,ood goat. If enough would do if milk would soon take a tumble hut while they keep on buying and nav ng. it is safe to state that the price will be higher hefore if is Io,-o,