The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1916-12-08
BY HARRISON GEORGE

II Is JN6 custom lot an 6uplOyGI
when faced with a demand for
wage increase, made by organized
labor to emit loud howls of purse
stricken pain, to cry 'confscation"
and complain that the predatory
poor" are rendering valueless his
immense holdings, into which he has
sunken-at great personal risk-his
life, his fortune and perhaps his
sacred honor"
Let us review in brief just what
this argument is worth when applied
to the U S. Steel Corporation in its
acquirement of the largest iron ore
deposits in the world on the Mesaba
Range in Minnesota.
Iron was discovered on the Mesaba
Range in 1890. AS the U. S. Steel
CORPORATION was not formed until
1901, we must deal with those whose
acts led to it's formation. The swarm
OF spectators which over-ran the
range upon the discovery of iron ore
can be roughly divided into three
groups: The Merritst and their
friends, a group of local capitalists;
Henry w. oliver, a wealthy Pittsburg
man, and the third group, lot OF get
rich-uuick pure-or-impure spectators,
who grabbed everything in sight and
then lay on their 'ores" waiting Tor
something to happen Something dld
happen-though not to their liking
The first question was that of trans
portation, and the Merritts, who were
real developers, built a railroad from
Lake Superior to the range. This re-
ouired more money than they had, so
they borrowed the necessary cash
from Rockefeller and, with child-like
simplicity, mortgaged their entire in
terests-mines and railroad-to the
oil king
The panic of the early '90s came on
and it, together with costly and ill
advised management, resulted in
Rockefeller taking over the whole
works of the Merritt group. He re-
fused to renew the loan and the real
developers were left with empty
hands. The hard times had also
pressed Oliver to the wall and he was
in the way of financial collapse when
approached by the Carnegie Steel
Company, and seeing a way out, he
hurried to Pitsburg.
1t was there that the Steel Trust,
the most pitless eXploiter OF labor the
world has witnessed, conceived itself
in the mind of Henry Clay Frick,
chairman Of the Carnegie Steel Com
pany. Frick knew Oliver needed
money and he enforced most amaz-
ING contract upon him, which Oliver,
having no alternative but bankruptcy,
accepted. The Carnegie Steel Com
pany loaned Oliver 100000, to be.
spent in development work. This loan
was secured by mortgage and, of
course. was to be repaid with interest
Yet a condition of the loan was that
Oliver must GIVE to the Carnegie
GIEbl Company HALT VI iAAh'
PRESENT AND FUTURE HOLD
INGS. In other words, Oliver was
held up for half his ore properties,
worth untold millions, and the Car
negie Steel Company afterward to
become the nucleus of the U. S. Steel
CORPORATION, came into control of half
it's present vast interests on the
Nesaba Range without costing Car
pegie so MUCH AS A POSTAGE
STAMP!
However, there was further work to
be done, and Frick and Oliver, now
working together dickered with Rock
efeller and by contract with Greasy
Holm secured leases on all the mines
Rockefeller had taken away from the
Merritts ct al, agreeing, in considera-
tiop of the small royalty he assented /
10 (25 cents per tom, to ship not less
than 100000 tons of ore each year
over the Rockefeller roads Rocky
caught them coming and going.
This was a great advantage to Car
neeie and Oliver, as the combination
between them and Rockefeller sent
the third group into Mysteries of fear
and they fought with one another to
get out from under, This was just
what Frick and Oliver had figured on,
and after much trouble in forcing
Carnegie to accept the fortune thus
TO be obtained, finally won his consent
and they bought up the best remain
ing locations on the range, acquiring
for what was to be the Steel Trust
incredible riches for song. Says
oliver writing to Carnegie, July 27
1897. in an effort to get his assistance:
81 desire to impress upon you that if
II had not been for our Rockefeller
deal. with the consequent demoraliza-
lion caused by the publication thereof,
if would not have been possible for
MS TO now secure the other range
properties | propose to acquire. Now,