The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1912-05-02

manner affected the monopoly and
the huge dividends Of the steel trust.
Hundreds of such measures were
introduced in both the house and the
senate while Mr.. Roosevelt was
president. Each and every one was
chloroformed and killed in commit
tee. 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
quarter of a century. Where is this
money coming from? Let us see:
Elton Huntington Hooker, treas
urer of the Roosevelt league, has
Just filed with the secretary of state
of New York a list of the contribut-
ors to the Roosevelt fund. This
sworn affidavit reveals that in the
city of New York alone George w.
Perkins, organizer of the harvester
trust ana director,of the, steel trust,
spent $4,000. Frank A. Munsey,
the largest individual holder of steel
stock (common) in the country, con-
tributed $15,O0O more. Thirty
thousand dollars Of steel trust money
spent in city Of one state alone,
and there are AZ states in the union:
This sworn statement shows that in
New York City, $50, 126.75 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 ne thus de-
bauched American standards and
should not be permitted to occupy 4
seat in the senate!
The point to this article, how
ever, is that the steel trust stands
by it's friends.
How Monopoly Works.
A fine example of how the rail-
roads of this country put on the
screws" is revealed by study of
the statement of earnings issued an
nually by the Delaware, Lackawanna
and Western, one of the anthracite
coal carrying roads. The following
figures show the charge per ton mile,
of hauling anthracite coal and gen.
eral merchandise, over a period of
four years:
1911 10 '09 'OS
Coal (cents).. .O.S3 0.s3 O.S6 O.S6
Merchandise .O.67 0.69 90 0.7O
These figures show that the rail-
road gets more for hauling coal than
it does for hauling merchandise, and
it is ridiculous to suppose that it
costs the railroads any more to haul
a ton of one kind of material than it
does another. A ton is a ton after
it is once loaded onto freight car.
The only explanation for the high
err coal charge is that all competition
has been suppressed in the coal car
rying trade, whereas the roads are
still forced to fight each other for
their merchandise patronage. Coal
is charged "all the traffic will BEAR"
and it will bear a great deal because
the railroads control the coal fields
and the transportation, and fix the
tidewater price by agreement among
themselves.
81 What Will He Do: "
4 Will President Taft have the nerve
to veto the democratic bill to cut
the tariff rate on wool?
Schedule *'K' places a rate of al
per cent on wool fabrics, 165 per
cent on cheap blankets, and 143 per
cent of flannel underwear. An ar
ticle worth IS seeking entry into this
market would be saddled with a
duty of $7.05. Such rates are stag
gering proof of the greed of protec-
tionists. They were not written in
to the law for the. purpose of increas-
ing the government revenue, but
were designed instead to increase
the profits of the wool manufacture
ers.
President Taft has declared these
rates to be 'indefensible.' In the
face OF this admission will he have
the nerve to block the honest at
tempt of the democratic house of
representatives to give the people
relief?
An Astounding Condition.
The supplementary report of
the Stanley Investigating committee
shows that % men-of1icers and di-
rectors Of the steel trust-are in alb
solute control of corporations repre-
senting a capitalization of $35,521,-
$4,000. These men, through inter-
locking boards of directors virtually
control all the great railroad sys-
TENS, street railways, express COM
panies, telegraph companies, steam
ship companies, the large industrial
corporations, system of powerful
banks and trust companies, and in
surance companies.
The total wealth of this nation is
only little over three times the
sum that these % men control alb
solutely. Twenty-three men in con-
troll Of more wealth than 100000
of their fellow American citizens!
Isn't this fine condition of affairs
to exist in a republic?