The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1910-02-26
THE NATIONS CAPITAL
Secretary Wilson Corrected
on Corner Grocer.
Insurgents Never Invited to
the White House.
The Group of Men Guiding
President Taft.
Special to the Irish Standard.

Special to the Irish Standard.
Washington, Feb. 24.-Secretary Will
son of the Department of Agriculture
who blames the corner grocer for the
increased cost of living has been call
ed" by Rep Chas. H. weisse of Wis
consin.
Mr.. Weisse declares Uncle JIM is
badly mistaken, cites figures and facts
to prove it.
Weisse is not only one of the lead
ers on his side of the House, but is an
operator Of large tannerics in the Bad
ger state. Therefore he is especially
qualified to discuss the issue as to
whether the retail butcher or the beef
trust is to blame.
Secretary Wilson il wrong, dead
wrong, in his statements to the effect
that the high cost of food products is
due to the immense profits Of the little
dealer" says Rep. Weisse. What the
Secretary is trying to do is as plain as
Il bright summer, sunshiny day. He
is trying to take the load off the pack
ers and trusts and shift it on the small
dealers II he would stop to figure q
minute he would find in 1900 failures
that We had in 1909, there We're 1880
failures of firms rated below $4,000,
only one that was rated 100000 and
one a million. This is according to
Bradstreets' reports on failures in 1909.
This is argument enough to settle the
question that it is the large packers
and trusts that are robbing the little
consumer and dealer.
Now, II the Secretary will also take
Bradstreets for January he will find
that the price of live hogs in 1896, in
Chicago, was $3.4O hundred, whila
dressed hogs sold for $3.S7 hundred.
which left a. profit of AZ cents to the
over the same report he will find
the price Of live hogs in January, 1910,
in Chicago, was $3.50 a hundred, while
the price of dressed hogs was s11.50,
which left $3.50 a hundred to the pack
ers for dressing, which is about six
times as much as the packers received
IN 1896,
III the secretary will ponder over the
cost Of articles of food as set out
authoritatively in Bradstreets he will
find that it is not the little fellow. or
81, 80 = =
the retailers that is making the money
out Of these extremely high prices. I'm
der the inflated system OF currency
maintained by the present administra-
ton, and with the excessive import
duties adding to the cost of everything,
1t costs the retailer great deal more
to do business than it did ten years
ago. The purchasing power of his dol
lar is almost cut in two.
1.-THE protectionists are trying to put
the blame on the retailer. The white
wash scheme may work for some time,
but believe that the people will take
advantage of the articles on the free
list in the Payne bill, one being tar and
the other feathers. which were reduced
IL per cent. A good coating of this at
this time, to some Of these Cannon and
Aldrioh and system followers. would
be good remedy for the present high
protection evil
Tile acknowledgements of the
west who thinks the Taft administra-
ton has been a failure may find it diff :
fcult to believe that Mr.. Taft is al
most certain OF election, vet that
is the indication now. Practical poll
y ticians declare that regardless of how
" the public stands az to Tafts admins
tration, he already has the re-nomina-
lion bottled. The men who will go to
the next Republican national conven-
ton are being selected, and selected
with the greatest of care. Delegates
to national conventions are generally
either Office holders or men satisfactory
to office holders. So far as it is within
the realm of possibility, Postmaste,
General Hitchcock is seeing to it thai
no man with a Roosevelt leaning getl
on the government payroll.
The Republican presidential nomina.
ton is not a gift of the people any
more as was originally intended. II
is the gift of the tariff trusts and othe,
special interests. President Taft PAID
the price, and high price, for a re.
nomination, when he signed the Payne
Aldrich- smoot tariff bill.
political blunder is a move which
receives adverse comment over wide
s section of country. Therefore the an.
pointment of Wade Ellis to the posi-
ton of chairman of the Republican ex.
ecutive committee of Ohio was a seri-
u ous blunder. While soliciting campaign
funds Of the corporations of Ohio, Ell
u lis is retained az special counsel 70,