The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1912-08-06
WASHINGTON LETTER.
BY c. H. Tavenner.

cratic administration is coming
into control of the government,
and knowing that this will mean
an end to the tariff protection
privilege under which they have
plunderd the people for nearly
a score of years, the tariff trusts
are going to raise prices again
this fall. They are going to take
one final gouge into the pocket
books Of the people before they
are pushed away from the
troughs of special privileges at
which they have grown fat.
The leather trust, which is
owned, for the most part, by the
beef barons, has announced that
the price of leather is to be in
creased 20 percent. This in
crease is attributed to the greater
demand of the automobile man
ufacturers for leather. This de-
mand is no greater now than it
has been for the last three or
four years and those who are ia
maliar with trade conditions
say the trusts excuse is only a
subterfuge. The increase will
mean another boost in the price
of shoes, which in turn will mean
that hundreds of thousands, es-
pecially women and children,
who are unable to pay more than
they are now paying. will have
to use cheaper grade of shoes.
The cloth manufacturers which
means the wooden trust also have
announced an increase in prices
for fall and winter deliveries.
The price of WOODEN cloth, it is
announced, is to go up all the
way from 5 to Is cents yard.
This increase is made necessary.
the trust managers say, by the
increased cost of labor, and by
an alleged shortage of wool, not
only in this, but in other wool
producing countries as we'll.
1t will be recalled that immedi-
ately after the Lawrence, Mass,
strike last winter the wool trust
boosted the prices of it's prod
ucts to meet the slight increase
granted the workers. The mill
men and women who had been
working for SIS, Sc and 81 week
were given a FIVE per cent in
crease, which meant only a few
additional cents to them. And
to meet this increase the wool
trust raised prices Is per cent,
which was sufficient to meet the
labor increases and to pay for all
the losses brought about by the
strike. BY sticking on this in
crease the trusts dividends were
not interfered with and when
the stock holders came to clip
their coupons they found that as
far as profits were concerned
there might just as we'll have
been no strike.
Both of these announced in
creases are purely arbitrary.
There isn't the slightest necessi-
ty to increase the prices of leath-
er or clothing, and the only ex-
cuse for either is the inordinate
greed of the trust owners.
These men know that after next
year they will have to climb
down from their high perch,
from where they have been di-
recting their wholesale robbery
of the people, and for that rea-
son they are preparing to get the
last dollar possible for them
selves before their special privi-
lege graft comes to an end.
THEY'RE ALL DOING IT NOW.
The trusts have found out that
nothing pays so well as "dissolu-
ton. " Following the decree of
the Supreme Court which order
ed the Standard Oil trust to dis
solve, the value of that corpora
tons stock rose rapidly. The
court decree, without changing
the trust except in a matter of
administration, amounted prac-
tically to a governmental guaran-
tee to violate the laws. After
the decree was issued the trust
owners discovered that the mon
opoly stood in no further danger
of prosecution, and as this al
ways has been the great menace
to the trust, it was a great boon