The Detroit times., 1911-05-26


BOSTON, May 26-Wheneyer you
buy q new pair of shoes for yourself
or your wife or your children, stop
q minute to think Of Sidney w. Win
slow, a white-haired, steeleyed. club
haunting, resident Of Boston. II 1t
were not for his gigantic shoe mo
chinery trust the dealer would be
able to sell you shoes 10 to so cents
less.
Ninety-nine out of every 100 Amer
lean citizens have to pay Winslow
cold coin for allowing them to wear
shoes. More pennies rattle In the
pocket OF the Winslow trust every
time baby COOS with delight at q
new pair of shoes.
How did Winslow build up this
pocket-picking machine? It's story
that makes the American people look
foolish.
The representatives of Massachu-
sets In congress are trying TO pass
law intended to crack Winslow's
trust across the knuckles and make
Il let go of the American people. But
the result Is doubtful, even IL the
law passes. Four years ago, after
desperate fight, the governor OF
Massachusetts, signed similar state
law. But II didn't work. Winslows
s50.000,000 trust has grown tremen-
dously In power since Massachusetts
tried to stop 1t.
Winslow and his associates have
taken desperate measures to build up
their gigantic business. They are
willing to resort to desperate meas
ures to keep II alive. In their time
they have done bold, hardy. merci-
less things, commercially.
Winslow once faced Henry H. Rog-
ers, the Standard OIL magnate, In
Rogers lair at 26 Broadway and
laughed In Rogers face when the lat
ter said to him:
mo, won't come into your trust.
But I'll own It before long"
But Rogers never did own II. He
tried desperately, but he never even
made a dent In 1t. Standard OIL men
looked winslow over and lost heart.
The plum was fne-that OF taking
tribute for every pair Of shoes worn
by the American public-but Win
slow wasn't q man who could De
fought with success, even by Stan
dard Oilers. v,rfIt 800
slows business had been one that
dealt directly with the public, like
Standard OIL, Winslow would be as
we'll known for smartness, shrewd-
ness and heartlessness as John ID.
Rockefeller.
How did Winslow build his shoe
machinery trust that adds nothing to
the real wealth OF the country, but
takes toll from us all? Here's the
story:
Sixty years ago there were no ma
chine made shoes. Then young Ly.
man r. Blake, In the early fifties. de-
yised a crude machine which would
sew the soles Of shoes onto the up
pers.
Today over 300,00o,000 pairs OF
shoes are sewed annually In the Unit
ed States. Their value Is half a bill
lion dollars.
The American public. which granted
the patent rights on the machinery,
has gained little financial benefit. The
profit has gone to someone else.
Blake was an impractical man. He
sold his machine for $4,000 to Cor
don Mckay. OF Boston. Mckay spent
$4,000 in developing the machine
and placed II on the market.
Mckay thought the machines ought
not to be sold, but leased, the shoe
manufacturer paying a royalty on
every pair of shoes made on the ma
chimes.
Mckay died millionaire. He might
have been hundred times richer, but
he was one OF the old school "live-and-
let-live" business men.
Many shoe-making machines were
invented and put on the market, but
Mckay did not fight them. He got as
much satisfaction out OF seeing the
shoe-making business progress as he
ala out of his riches. He had caused
shoes to be made rs per cent stronger
and had reduced the actual cost OF
labor over so cents a pair. Increased