The Duluth rip-saw. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1917-19??, 1917-09-29

coming, told Mr.. Philbin what was
in store for him and, also, adj
vised not only to get position
with the late James j. Hill but to
try to induce that Empire Builder
to acquire the Wright & Davis
properties.
Mr.. Hill held back. Mr.. Philbin
persuaded Louis Hill, then a mere
boy, to inspect the logging road,
lands and mines. He showed Evil
sion and genius" for he made an
optimistic report and induced the
elder Hill to acquire the Wright &
Davis interests for $4,80O,000,
which Mr.. Gates had turned down
less than a year before at a price
Of So, 100000, and which he ex-
pected to get for So, 100000, if his
"vision and genius' induced him
to buy at all.
That purchase not only included
the present line of the G. N. R.
from Swan River to Hibbing but
thousands of acres of land and the
fees thereto-some Of the lands
already having producing iron
mines. That purchase, in fact, in
Guided the cream Of the Great
Northern ore interests Of today
and enabled that company to cut
some big melons in later years.
The Mahoning mine, alone,
warranted the deal several times
over. At that time, it was known
to contain 100000 tons of CON-
mercial iron ore. The G.. N. R.
received so cents a ton for car
rying the ores to the Allouez ore
docks. The cost was 20 cents
ton, leaving a net profit Of 60
cents ton, or an aggregate profit
of $24, 100000, merely for trans
porting the ore to the mine. There
was a profit on the ore, besides.
Louis Hill has, stated that the
Mahoning ore-carrying contract,
alone, was worth $10,000,00O.
Eventually, 100000 tons of
ore were developed at the Mahon-
ing mine. Today, the G. N. R.
probably gets 60 cents a ton for
carrying the ore from mine to
docks. The actual cost is about
II cents, leaving a net profit of
43 cents ton or an aggregate
profit >of about $17,OOO,O0O. It is
not unlike ly, then, that by the
time the ores in the Mahoning
mine are exhausted, that the net
profit for transporting those ores
from mine to dock will be about
$4O,0O0,0OO.
Other Hill iron mines, exclusive
of the Mahoning, later on were
leased to the u. S. Steel Corpora
ton at royalties exceeding any,
thing ever before known on the
range.
Had Mr.. Gates possessed "the
vision and genius'' that the News
Tribune editorial claims for him,
the story would have been entirely
different.
To an humble commoner, it
looks as if such meu as Alfred
Merritt, Donald NJ. Philbin and
Louis Hill were the men who pos
sessed "the vision and genius"
Perhaps it was Mr.. Gates "vi-
sion and genius'' that caused him
to attempt to reduced the royalties
on ores from state school. lands
from 25 cents to 10 cents a ton,
thereby crimping Minnesota
educational resources just that
much. Men in Duluth and in
other sections of Minnesota Joined
hands in that effort to rob the
public schools to benefit John D.
Rockefeller and they made con-
siderable Roadway until some pub
lic-spirited citizens of Minnesota
finally opened the eyes of the
Legislators to the iniquity of the
scheme, after which they dropped
it like a hot potato.
When the U. S. Steel Corporation
was being organized, it is stated
that j. Pierpont Morgan stood
ready to pay as high as $120,OOO,-
OCO for the Lake Superior Con-
solidateG Iron Mine holdings.
They eventually came in at about
$68,000,O00. If Rev. Frederick T.
Gates had possessed a full meas
ure of "vision and genius" he
should have seen and secured the
additional $52,O0O,OOO that the
colossal Morgan would have paid.
No one doubts that Mr.. Gates
is an able man but the evidence
fails to show that he is a super
man in vision and genius"