The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1912-05-02
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Special Washington Correspond.
ent of The Times.

Special Washington Correspond.
ent of The Times.
By CLYDE H. Tsvenner.
Washington, D. C.-That the Steel
Trust is willing to spend money to
elect men to public office who are
willing to serve it after they get into
office, is again being demonstrated.
When Theodore Roosevelt was
president of the United States he per-
mitted the Steel Trust to absorb its
principal rival, the Tennessee Coal
and Iron company. This permission
to violate the law was worth millions
of dollars to the steel trust, because
it practically assured the trust a
monopoly, leaving it free, by the
simple process of tightening the
screws on the public, to extort most
any price it desired for its wares.
The absorption of the Tennessee
company by the steel trust was, in
direct violation of both the spirit and
the letter of the law. No one denies
this. Not even the attorneys for the
steel trust contend now, or ever did
contend, that the deal was legal.
This is not the only favor Theodore
Roosevelt did for the steel trust, or
the harvester trust, at the request of
Geo. w. Perkins, then partner of J.
Pierpont Morgan.
Roosevelt's commissioner of cor
porations investigated the harvester
trust, found it illegal, but at the sug-
gestion of Mr.. Perkins, the report
was not made public.
The most exhaustive search of the
records of Congress during the years
that Roosevelt was President fails to
show the passage of a single measure
that even in the most remote manner
affected the monopoly and the huge
dividends of the Steel Trust. Hun
dreds of such measures were intro
duced in both the House and the
Senate while Mr.. Roosevelt was
President. Each and every one was
chloroformed and killed in committee.
And Mr.. Roosevelt never raised his
voice in protest.
Mr.. Roosevelt is now a candidate
for office. Every politician in the
land is aware that he is spending
more money to obtain delegates than
any candidate for the Presidency has
spent in this country in the last quar-
ter of century. Where is this
money coming from? Let us see:
Elton Huntington Hooker, treasurer
of the Roosevelt league, has just filed
with the secretary of state of New
York list of the contributors to the
Roosevelt fund. This sworn affidavit
reveals that in the city Of New York
alone George w. Perkins, organizer
of the harvester trust and director Of
the Steel Trust, spent SIS, 600. Frank
A. Munsey, the largest individual
holder of steel stock (Common) in the
country, contributed $4,000 more.
Thirty thousand dollars of steel trust
money spent in city of one state
alone, and there are Al states in the
Union! This sworn statement shows
that in New York City $50, 126. rs was
spent to get about $1,000 Roosevelt
votes, or practically 81 vote.
Senator Stephenson spent only half
as much per vote in Wisconsin and it
was declared that he thus debauched
American standards and should not
be permitted to occupy seat in the
Senate!
The point to this article, however,
is that the steel trust stands by its
friends.
How Monopoly Works.
A fine example of how the railroads
of this country put on the screws
is revealed by a study Of the state
ment of earnings issued annually by
the Delaware, Lackawanna and
Western, one of the anthracite coal
carrying roads. The following figures
show the charge per ton mile, of
hauling anthercite coal and general
merchandise, over a period of four
years:
1911 1910 1909 1908
Coal Gent. :. .83 .83 .86 .8
Merchandise. 81 SO 10 10
These figures show that the rail-
T. .~o1 kLox.