Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1917-11-08
WHAT A GOOD OBSERVER
THINKS OF TWINE TRUST

1
shrewd observer writes regarding
the Infamous Irvine trust, which is
lrobbing the American farmers OF 20
million dollars year to benefit Car
rama, with no apparent serious effort
on the part of our government to stop
the outrage. He says:
wonder. as / knock about the
country, what has become OF that big
noise which wa $
About That made while back
Irvine Trust about a SUI p o s d
Irvine trust" Mr..
Reguladora, or some such Mexican
name, came in for good deal OF
gratuitous cussing from as many
different angles as there were trade
papers, because he had gentle
mans agreement" with a bunch OF
American bankers who consented to
lend their money, but not their
names, to beautifully arranged
scheme to clamp the lid on the Irvine
market, with the result that the
farmers of the land are paying to-
day more than twice as much for their
binding Irvine than 1t was worth
wear ago. l remember that the imple-
ment dealers all over the country
loudly denounced the combination
and bombarded congress with thou
sands Of petitions and prayers ana
kilograms, urging them to take ac-
ton IMMEDIATELY to relieve the
farmers from the outrageous steal
which was about to be perpetrated.
remember that many petitions
were circulated among the farmers
themselves for sig
Congress Got natures, but 1t was
No Results difficult to interest
them-they were
frightfully afraid that there was
scheme up somebody's sleeve to
grab something" The congress-
mems ears are always very close to
the grass roots and they listened Gag
erly for the command Of the farmer,
but it was whisper not command,
and they handled it on whisper ba-
sis. True, they appointed an invest
igating committee but they've got
lost in the shake-up for no one has
heard a word from them since their
appointment and Mr.. Reguladora-to-
gether with the money of the Ameri-
can bankers-has whistled the price
of binding Irvine to point never be-
fore known-as fragrant a violation
of the anti trust laws as this country
has ever INDUCED in, and the farm
ers are paying for the whistle. = Had
the farmers of the land Joined forces
with the implement dealers-had the
farmers organizations and the vari-
Gus implement dealers associations
Tut their full power into this fight,
TOGETHER, the law making body
would not only have languidly listen
ed-they would have acted. The
worst of 1t is to come yet as they say
that the high water mark In Irvine
prices has not been reached.
It's quite necessary to lick the Ger
mans, we're all agreed on that point,
but 1t Is equally
Trounce the nece ssary TO
Home Profiteers trounc Q "A # Q W
Mexican-American
financiers, who are taking advantage
of the excitement of the war and the
deafness of our senators and con-
gressmen to fitch from the public's
that means your pocket
and mine many millions Of dollars
oy the Binding Irvine route. 1t must
be nightly discoursging to men like
Mr.. Lukens of the Farm Implement
News. who has made such a wonder
full fight to break up this nefarious
com bination. to see the lack of inter
est displayed by the farmers them
selves in the effort to save them the
enormous sum of money which is be-
ing deliberately stolen from them by
this bunch of inscriptions specu-
Iators. The trouble is, everybody Is
so nervously over what is
GOING to happen that they can t see
what is actually happening under
heir very noses. This matter should
lot be allowed to restN Conservation
md economy is the cry and there is
. splendid place to begin. Sorry to
disturb you, Mr.. Congressman, but
wake up, please and see what you