Show A RUST T convention ITS PURPOSE IS 13 TO STUDY THE EVILS OF COMBINES Ileth to abolila Abo lili them also to lo ho con antl anil oth obber cr special shown to uc ie suz suj gest ff CAllons ions for the he at the suggestion of tho non knute haute nelson governor of minnesota tile tho governors of aff 20 states have already decided to appoint 10 delegates from each state to toa a convention to be held in chicago Chicag 0 in in 1 juno june to consider remedies for tho the evils of tho the coal and other combines combine and sand trusts there is a great need of such a convention and if tho the right men are appointed delegates tho the convention will como come to conclusions which will open the eyes not only of such men is as was james 0 blaine who re regarded added trusts as private affairs andrew andre carnegia Camo Carne gio who said baid tho the public may inay regard trusts or combinations with serene confidence and senator slier man who thought to rid the country of these ugly monsters by a single law spread out on our statute books but of all republicans or democrats who imagine that any laws or sets bets of laws which simply declare trusts or combines illegal make the trustees or officers guilty of misdemeanor or crime ind and impose lines fines and penalties of any kind or extent will abolish trusts all such laws like sher mans antitrust law which has had no effect except to make it advisable for a few trusts to change their names will have about tho the same effect upon trusts as pruning the water sprouts has upon a vigorous apple free or as a clod in tho the way has upon a growing potato vine the truth is that so long as thero exists a rich monopoly soil irrigated by numerous acts of special legislation we may expect tho the omnipresent seeds of selfishness and greed to take root and grow and spread into giant monopoly plants it is a waste of time to cut off the branches or even to pull up individual plants by the roots the conditions which give lifo life to this plant must be changed or the plant will bo be 1 source of constant annoyance anno ance and harm what these conditions are and how they can be changed for the better can bo be easily discovered bovere d by the convention if it starts inquiry in in the right light direction the things essential to trusts the conditions that make it possible for pro producers dubers to control production and fix prices so as to make enormous profits must first be sought after to illustrate suppose we select as samples a dozen of tho the worst law breakers now preying upon consumers and laborers ind and producing producing paupers haupers pau pers tramps and criminals by the thousand the sugar cordage window glass steel rail coras borax saw ax A x copper ingot standard oil reading coal starch and rubber trusts rusts are well known and generally what are the conditions which oster foster these monopolies the sugar trust has a monopoly of boff the refining business in this country tho the st of refining sugar 0 is about i cent per aund and the price of refined sugar should bould not exceed tho the price of the raw Z 1 in 0 i i a 10 w d of del ant T eis ir 0 1 l 1 l allm vs sav ajr than jor t or of a cent yet the trust now pays 4 cents for raw anil ana gets 52 5 cents for refined sugar arid anil has maintained maint aind I 1 abent this 0 difference ference lif for the last three years As wo we consume about 70 40 pounds 1 of sugar per capita this means that the trust is making a profit of or would do so if it were doing a strictly legitimate busi business riess and was not paying 11 unreasonable prices for opposition refineries fin flu eries many of which it holds idle As i it is the trust is making a net profit of about 2 a year from a nominal capital of 7 anil an actual capital of perhaps it is not difficult to determine tho condition that makes lifo life desirable to this I 1 trust it ia tho the duty of 4 per cent per pound on refined sugar abolish this duty and tho the prices of raw and refined sugar must stay as close to each cach other as they do in england otherwise wo we would use imported sugar this more would wipe out over i of the trusts profits aull and would probably kill tho the monster as the extra profits to bo be had bad from i combination would not cover tho the interest on capital invested in idle or useless punts plants and tho the risk of attempting to manipulate markets and stocks competition would again bo be free and consumers would pay P ay less for refined and producers get more for raw su sugar suar ar substantially the same arguien argument t holds bolas in regard to tho the steel rail the window glass tho the starch the hubbar arid and of scores of other trusts of which these are but samples special tariff legislation gives them life health and profits undo this legislation and this class of trusts will either cither cease to exist or be pow iless to accomplish great evil besides the class of trusts directly do pendent upon import duties which prevent foreign trade there is another large class indirectly dependent upon 11 or great ly aided by these duties in f fact act there are not half a dozen important trusts in this country that are not benefited by the mckinley McKin lcy tariff suppose we consider the saw trust it might exist without a tariff because it is now selling belling circular hand and crosscut saws in all parts of the to tho careless observer tho the trust is therefore independent of foreign competition but con shuen saws are ara sold for about 25 per cent more in our ow own a protected than in foreign unprotected markets why because tho the import duties prevent outside competition iu in this I 1 but not in foreign unprotected markets trade wo we could at least get our saws is as cheaply as foreigners because if necessary we could buy them in the garuo bamo markets arid and port thomi them what is true of odthe the saw is true of tho As and dozens of 0 other trusts engaged in talis nefarious lin business siness of selling lower abroad than at home theto is still mother another class classow of trusts like the reading coal the tha borax boras an and 1 I tile tho St standard andara oil oa trusts which usually derive nourishment from tariffs fj but which iro ire mainly dependent upon other kinds I 1 t f special pih privileges dees the right to monopolize what may bo be called natural banit to or ph eh as all the orl 7 available bouto ci cities tiei cen cen certain mines deposits or owne 3 tho privilege lego of exclusive ways j of mines deposits water long i ja ther other of natures bounties so perm penni jo corporation or individual is use it ato to own and have tho the c exclusive cl asive coal benefit of the only anthracite ban iu in this country the he price of can tal al will be is s high as the trust te tit i it of course combo com BO limited I 1 to the os ex a too high price would freeze b piers iners arid and reduce profits ino ty ly of 73 75 cents per ton on aitu trust oal helps the anthracite coal 0 r ustain prices where thero there would but all from foreign coal still F Lack bono of this trust and it is ri right ht 1 ig g will not bo be broken until the abali 11 ono natures bounties is bo be rr m J it is probable that this could the 0 1 easily cagily accomplished by taxing as mi ra of these natural opportunities hiro hire c jas they could get it if they should shona lege or sell the use of such t the I 1 PI pi ica the owners of the coil coal beds its ha i balcum fields or the borax depos io 0 pay in taxes all that these eriv mono moll atia ald them hem above fair profits these heels aies would at once kick up their could couk 11 ll ill expire the reading company do dollar to la lot lo 10 t tt then he afford nafford to pay millions of coal 0 i li n year interest on mortgages on oil idle 1 03 s ads gds were bought and held coll bouli ul italy ply to obtain a monopoly nor hold 4 i M smith afford to buy up and vada ie all of the bornt borax deposits iu in nc oil I 1 t atah and oregon tire the standard mak inala at would never have existed to it i zens of multimillionaires multi millionaires trust trus legislation which restricts pd competition and laws that zivo ivo or f I 1 privileges to those who by fair store i means get control of natures ble use that have made trusts matt ti t the trust convention sifts these then the I 1 3 to tho the bottom it will recommend ile legation gation of all such buch laws and eriv byron W holt |