The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1908-03-06
nualMEss CONDITIONS.


There are. ncourdine 70 the reports
10 'he railroads. 300 600 cars and hun.
drtds of engines idle. whereas year
ago There were not enough 20 carry
the freight offered Such an enormous
shrnkaeo Of business on the railroads
Is pretty good barometer Of business
depression elsewhere. Another indi'
cation Of business stagnation is the
iron trade which only produced lii
tie over 100000 tons Of pig iron
In January compared with 1900
600 tons in October But as
trust controls the iron industry II is no
longer as reliable trade barometer
as il used TO be. The steel trust, in
spite Of the falling on in the demand
for it's products. has determined TO
maintain prices Before the organiza
ton Of the steel trust the price OF iron
and steel was gagged by supply and
demand. and in times Of business dis
tress the price OF steel products fol.
lowed closely the price OF other com
modities.
Importations Of merchandise at New
York have dropped II per cent In
January as compared with December.
There is also a curtailment OF produc-
ton in nearly all industries Of from 20
TO % per cent. and declines in values
of 10 TO 20 per cent. in many manu-
featured products Economy is preya-
lent and many workmen are out OF
job
These are not pleasing facts. but 1t
is no use TO conceal them in looking
! forward TO what will come Business
cannot much revive until the process
Of readjustment is completed from the
! changed conditions from the boom
times 10 the present liquidation The
great trusts are fighting against this
reimbursement and are straining every
nerve 10 hold up the price Of their
products They probably know that
| this effort retards "A return TO prosper
| It's. for lower prices are needed TO IN
duce greater consumption. but being
| protected by the tariff they can com
pei the people 10 still pay the price OF
PROSPERITY without participating In H.
The managers Of the great trusts
are all Republicans; they have been
fostered By Republican tariff legisla
ton and they desire to keep the Re
publican party in power To reduce
the price Of their products they would
have to lower wages and that just be
fore a national election would be Ike
IL TO lead 10 disaster TO the party
which protects them. They, therefore
prefer to run their furnaces on hal
or one-third time than TO increase
their output and reduce prices anC
wages. They hope 70 control thei
workmen by keeping them on hal
time better than by more work am
reduced pay.
There is one redeeming feature tha
appears 10 Offset these discog.agin
facts. The price Of farm products col
tinues fairly remunerative, so tina
whereas there is much poverty in tn
cities there Is plenty on the farms
II is appalling To think OF what cond
tons would now be il there had bee
a crop failure the past year OF any
the leading agricultural product
The whole country is now leaning o
the farmers and those who look ahea
for signs o. the times are fixing the
gaze on what the promise OF the mel
crops will be. both here and abroa
for good or bad crops Will decide II
3 business future of the country for II
r next year at least.
Meanwhile. the trusts and oth'
!. tariff protected interests are bleedir
the farmers at every pore. for no OF
q else can AFFORD to buy trust produc
q in any quantity on account OF his
r trust prices. II the present Repu
$ lean congress had revised the taT
= so that the protected monopolis
e would feel the competition fro
g abroad the farmers, al least, would
saving millions a month which is nc
: ahnorbed by the trusts. II YOU wa
u 70 know what is going TO happen ke'
= vodr eyes fixed on the weather mi
and the farmers.