The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-04-23

ments over the high cost of living and
a great many reasons have been al
| yanced as to what the real reason is,
That some reason or cause exists Tor
the unusually high prices on. practical
ly everything that the IA 10
buy, be it eatables or wearing apparel,
| we all agree on, There are many goods
that have doubled in price in the last
eight or nine years. Is this caused
by a natural growth and development
of the country? Does the producer re-
ceive the proportionate advance IN
prices on his product or has labor ad-
vanced so much that to manufacture
and put the goods on the market, 1t
has become necessary to double the
prices? We do not believe that either
of these reasons are the cause of 1t.
The complaints and protests from
the working class as well as the com
mon people have been so strong that
the government decided to find out
who and what were the causes of these
high and e~xhorhitant prices. Congress
finally decided that the middleman or
retail merchants were the ones VINO
made enormous profits and were the
cause of the high prices.
In the United States senate on May
IS. 1909, Senator Aldrich of Rhode Is
land and Senator Hale of Maine charg-
ed that the retail merchants, as a class
are Villainous eXtortionists, rapidly
amassing colossal fortunes by over
charging the consumer and laying the
blame on the broad shoulders OF me
Door and abused American trusts, etc
Senator Gore arose and said; rms
bedy it seems has converted itself into
a grand jury and has returned an IN
| dictment against the retailers ana
! middlemen of the country. The man
ufacturerS, the trusts and mOnopolles
| are undertaking to hold up the middle
men and retailers as a shield to pro-
tect themselves against the wrath OF
the outraged consumers. | am not the
| chosen defender of the retailers of this
country but in their behalf l desire
here and now to enter a plea OF not
SENATOR Gore then laid before this
diRnihed august body some facts and
| figures that startled the multl-mlllloh-
aires. He said: The cotton ana
wooden manufacturing companies OF
! Massachusetts have declared DIVIDENDS
~ al per cent on their entire invest
ment, How will the senators from
Maine and Rhode Island explain n
Justify these enormous and eXhorhltant
dividends?"
ed If he could give the names OF any
Of such manufacturers who had de-
cIared such dividends, To which the
senator replied: 'The Troy Cotton
and Wooden Manufacturing Co. declar-
ed a dividend of 81 per cent, the
| Acushnett Cotton Manufacturing Co
declared a dividend Of IS per cent, the
! dartmouth Cotton and Manufacturing
Co, declared a dividend or DO per cent
Again the senator was asked: were
he dividends payable in cash or were
thev payable in stock dividends?"
'"They were in cash. replied the sena-
tor, and in order to shield such enor-
nous dividends in the future, they
have resolved to double their capltal
stock"
CORPORATIONS discovered that the state
ment OF their enormous profits would
20 out before the people, they had to
40 something to reduce these enor-
NOUS profits and the quickest way to
do this was to connect he watermalns
with the rivers and lakes and turn on
the water. When they had about 70
per cent water they succeeded IN re-
ducing their dividends to about is per
| cent on their stock including the wat
er.
Now let us take a look at the to-
hacco trust On Sept. 80, 1912, H. K.
| Smith, commissioner Of corporations,
submitted his report to President Taft.
It reads in part as follows: In 1910
on a capital of $40, 100000 the stock
holders made S25, 900, 900 In profit"
This was over go per cent on the com
mon stock in one year and does not
include extra dividends of subsidiary
companies, Mr.. Smith further stated
that the profits had increased from II
per cent in 1900 to 55 per cent in 1913.
How does this compare with the 10
per cent that the retail dealers are
handling the product of the trusts for
And in addition the retail dealers have
- o1 oil nVnnnEaa nf doing business
such as taxes, insurance. light, fuel,
wages, etc. In many cases 1t boosts
the retailer more than 10 per cent to
do business,
How about the sugar trust j. ],
Ryan of st, Paul, n of the best post
ed men in this line of work in the
United States, stated at a meeting in
Minnesota last year that one of the
largest producers of sugar in this
country admitted before a congress
sional committee that it cost about SO
to produce 100 pounds of g~Fanulated
beet sugar and a few cents more to
produce 100 pounds of cane sugar
This statement is further verified by
Mr.. Arbuckle, the great coffee man as
we'll as sugar man. who stated in New
York city last year that 1t cost about
$3.50 to produce 100 pounds beet sug-
ar and about SO to produce 100
pounds zane sugar. Further we know
that the retail merchants are not max
ing so cents on 100 pounds Of sugar
and less than a year 9 sugar was
selling for over 81 per 100 pounds
When we realize that during 1912
5000, 900, 900 pounds of sugar was 0 n
sumed in the United States as against
one-half that amount in 1900 1t viii
give us an idea what the sugar trust
is making on sugar. But not satisfied
with the enormous profits, the trusts
tnl ~ Iafnnt,i 49, l.
weights by means of a secret spring
in h scales. For this fraud a few
clerks and minor officers were con-
yicted and received Jail sentences and
fines while the men higher up went
free.
The good book says that it is easier
for a camel to go through the eye
of a needle than for a rich nan tc
enter the kingdom of heaven. If the
writer of that passage had lived to.
day, | believe he would also have add.
ed that it is easier for a camel to &c
through the y of a needle than fol
the courts to convict a multi million,
aire.
About a year ago the Texas Stock
Growers association took up the In
vestigatien of the meat trust and IL
was claimed that in some cases 20l
per cent was made by the trust. Won,
der what the senators in Washington
would have to comment on such profits
We also have the cereal trusts, who
according to the latest investigations
are now ready to go to the poor house
1t was brought out that the trust makes
from IS to 40 per cent profit while thu
retailer gets about 5 per cent. Nc
wonder the courts have taken a hand
in the matter to curb these greedy
and powerful trusts.
1t is almost impossible to name q
single article that the trusts are no