Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1912-01-27
DEs MONIES pRiNTERs' TRUST
FORCED TO DISSOLVE ~
COURTS.
GRAND JURY INVESTIGATION
BRINGS ABOUT DISSOLUTION
James N. Pierce. Responsible For
Breaking Up Combine, Center Of
Vicious Newspaper Attaeks-ons Of
"orsatsr'' Dss Moinss committss's
offsprinss.
pecial TO Times-Republican,

MONIES printing COMBINE mas been Ols-
solved and thus there is one less trust
in Iowa.
The dissolution was not due to any
thing done by the greater Des Moines
committee. which is closely identified
with all the big public service cor
porations and the big business of the
capital city. The printing combine
went to pieces because the Polk county
grand jury was too inquisitive and
some OF the courts seemed to be i'm
pervious to the pressure from big
business" which, was locally applied.
Incidentally the death of the print
ing combine is big feather in the cap
of James M. Pierce, of the Homestead,
who was some time ago threatened
with libel suit because of pamphlet
which he got out giving in detail the
methods of doing business of the trust.
1t told of a certain door in an office
block with plain number on it and
back of the door was a girl at a desk
and a phone. and how this little office
was connected up with all the concerns
in the trust, and price fixing and BUSH
ness division were supposed to be
carried on.
From the very date Of publication of
that little pamphlet the newspaper
Representatives of the trust have been
bounding Pierce and showing him up
as terrible man. In fact they seem
state that Pierce is scheming and
self seeking politician, and have drawn
upon him a flood of abuse because he
trof tn b,1s} or In, y,01ifirS
to bend the knee to the kitchen cabi-
net. The bust up of the printers
trust is pretty near to a vindication
Of James NJ. Pierce.
1t was this self same combine which
undertook last winter in the legislature
to get law passed that would have
virtually put all the state printing in
the Des Moines printing offices and
the combine would have parceled it out
among the offices. The attack was
made on the state printing system.
Long ago the state, which does let out
great deal Of its printing. adopted the
policy of securing bids on large jobs
from cities Of Iowa other than Des
Moines because of realization that
there was something about the Des
MONIES situation to prevent fair COM
petition.
Now the printing combine is dead
one, and the efficiency committee" of
the greater Des Moines committee"
is busy with other things. Two mem
| bers of the committee run printing Of
fees.
Governor Clarke has accepted an in
vitation to address the mems club of
80. <op
of the strong religious organizations Of
the city, on Feb. Is.
DR.. A. E. Kepford. state lecturer on
tuberculosis, has been unusually busy
the past month filling engagements for
lectures and he is out practically all
the time. The demand for lectures on
the subject of general health is grow
ing SO rapidly that it is a question
whether or not the state, or some pri-
vate agency, shall not furnish others
to aid in taking up the work. Every
where in the state there is the greatest
interest in this work for the making Of
healthier Iowa.
Attorney General Cosson will see
that Iowa appears in the big express
rate hearing before the interstate COM
merce board next week in Washington
and that the state gets square deal. 1t
had been the intention of Mr.. Cosson
to insist upon some general investiga-
ton of a national character to run
parallel with that of the state and he
was therefore greatly pleased when the
commercial bodies took it. It was
found on the investigation by the state
that the companies were able to make
use of the same statistics in different
ways in different states ard the only
way to get at the truth of the matter
as to expense of the business was to
have a nationwide inquiry. This is
now provided for and the state cases
will virtually wait for the completion
Of the larger inquiry.