fiFTipifw iw
DECEMBER 23, 1911
The Commoner.
Meaning of Aldrich Currency Scheme
It Would Be "Thumbs Down" Upon a Wall Street Push Button
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f ? Ja ful' ifc was an ironical coincidence
Sii?!aiCedMtho worst fleeced of thQ victimized
Merritt brothers on the witness stand before the
Stanley committee in Washington at the very
time when Nelson Aldrich had gathered, at tho
dictates of Wall street, with the aid of the rail
roads, an impressive group of bankers in New
Orleans, and was expounding to them tho beau
ties -and benefactions of his newest financial
scheme an advance upon his earlier ones in
that it is calculated to fasten upon this coun
try an even more scientifically efficient monopoly
of money and credit, a more nearly perfect
monopoly of monopolies than was possible even
under such earlier Aldrich devices as that which
made the impoverishment of the Merritts by
John D. Rockefeller as easy as the game of tho
county-fair shell worker.
It is not our purpose today to present a study
of Sactiraonious business scoundrelism. nor to
indulge in reflection upon the character and
methods of a queer compounder of piety and
piracy, who could find a fit lieutenant only in
the person of a preacher of tho gospel of the
Christian God,
The 'facts as testified point what seems to us
a more important, because more practical,
moral. We cite simply an illuminative portion
of the reported record:
The Merritts, of Duluth, were men of tho
woods, who discovered the worth of the now
famous Mesabe ore fields Jn Minnesota. After
they had located the ore they built the Duluth,
Missabe and Northern railroad to connect the
range with the Duluth and Winnipeg railroad,
sixty-four miles, at an actual cost of $660,000,
in lieu of which the builders accepted $1,200,000
stock and $1,200,000 in bonds.
The Merritt brothers needed $1,000,000 more
to extend into Duluth and build terminals. This
money they obtained from John D. Rockefeller
through the Rev. Mr. Gates, then in charge of
Rockefeller's charities.
Following this came a consolidation of ore
and railroad properties, and in this consolida
tion Merritt put up about $3,000,000 worth of
securities on a call loan of $420,000 from John
D. Rockefeller.
Leonidas Merritt swears he was urged by Mr.
Rockefeller's clerical counselor to trust in John
D. Rockefeller. He had a conference with Mr.
Rockefeller, who opposed a receivership for tho
road on the ground that it would have "a little
tinge of violating the law." On Merritt's re
fusal to throw, his Minnesota friends and rela
tives overboard and join with Rockefeller in
gobbling the great property, tho $420,000 loan
was called in twenty-four hours and $6,000,000
to $10,000,000 worth of securities swallowed
by Rockefeller, leaving Merritt to "walk tho
railroad ties back to Duluth."
And when Merritt was asked why ho could
not obtain money accommodation elsewhere on
properties then valued ati$10,000,000 and now
estimated as being worth $700,000,000 to tho
gteel trust, this was his sworn testimony:
"He spread the report in Cleveland and else
where that he had paid $10 per share for stock
not worth more than $5, and I could not raise
tho money. Rockefeller was the money power
In 1893. He said, 'Hands off! Them fellows are
my meat,' and the money would not loan.
"What reason was given for the call?" asked
Mr. McGillicuddy, of the committee.
"None. They wanted my property, I sup
pose, and that was all there was to it," replied
Merritt.
Now, the significance of this one of many
instances that there are male as well as female
vampires, who strip the fool who trusts them
"to his foolish hide," does not seem to us to lie
tn the already known callous hypocrisy of a
Rockefeller and his hired underlings. The real
lesson of the fleecing of the Merritts is the faul
ttness of this nation's financial systom. For the
story of the Mesabe men is but a repetition of
the tale of tens of thousands of other men who,
jy the timely cutting off of their credit, have
been sucked into the maw of the money masters.
The moral of it all is a stinging rebuke to
the lazy folly of a people who submit to a sys
tem which restricts legitimate business men to
seeking credit from more powerful competitors;
a system which compels the possessor of valu
able assets to develop them only by obtaining
the needed money accommodation irum mu w;
the rival moans of transportation, manufacture
and supply of raw staple products.
That system has meant nothing but bank
tolerance until the enticement into dependence
of the business man of the Merritt type, with
coveted possessions, is complete. Thon the in
stant annihilation of tho liquid value of his
assets and then surrender or bankruptcy or
both.
It is tho ripening knowledge of this. power
and its abuse by the money masters that has
created the sentiment which is forcing tho arch
parasites of our civilization and tholr political
servants to make pretense of giving to tho
American people a different system.
But they "are meeting a national demand, that
has put a little fear into their minds, in a
thoroughly characteristic way. Thoy have
chosen as their champion the chief exponent of
all their cherished special privileges. They
have made their spokesman Aldrich, of Rhode
Jsland, whose whole life has been devoted to
the enactment of cheating legislation, designed
to foster monopolies and exploit and despoil tho
honest producer, merchant and manufacturer.
As is always the case with the most vicious
proposals of legislation, there is a seeming yield
ing to an intelligent, imperative public demand
in tho Aldrich financial scheme. Many wise
and useful betterments are included in its pro
visions. But it is so framed that underlying
all that is good is tho real intent, tho insurance
of a control by tho little group of the money
masters over the credit of every legitimate busi
ness man more nearly absolute than ever yet has
existed.
Should the Aldrich scheme over become law,
there would be no future parallels of this Mer
ritt case. It would no longer bo necessary for
a Rockefeller to ingratiate himself with the in
tonded -victim tiirougu tne agency of a saintly
secretary and "brotherly" manner in personal
intercourse. With the Aldrich scheme legalized,
all that would be needed would bo "thumbs
down!" upon a push button on a Wall street
desk, and tho victim's credit would be auto
matically shut off in the smallest and the biggest
bank in the smallest and tho biggest city in the
land. Philadelphia North American.
SPREAD DEMOCRATIC DOCTRINE
C. G. Cunningham,. Omaha, Neb: Herewith
please find five subscriptions to The Commoner,
and my check to cover. I am glad to be able
to help in spreading the propaganda of progres
sive democracy and trust the good work may
go on and ultimately eventuate in an irresis
tible demand for the restoration of government
such as the fathers of this republic, had in view
when thoy worked and struggled and sacrificed
to establish it. As I view the situation tho
greatest obstacles to needed reforms among tho
people of today, is a general decline of national
spirit and wide spread indifference to public
affairs tho very condition that Mr. Jefferson
declared, would have the effect of dividing the
people into the two classes, "wolves and sheep."
Nothing is needed so much, just now as a na-tion-wido
revival of interest in these matters and
I know of no greater stimulus to such an
awakening than the work that is being done by
The Commoner and its ablo and patriotic editor.
If the people can be aroused before and during
the coming national campaign to an alert and
intense Interest in their public affairs, there Is
no question that they are intelligent enough and
honest enough to settle the vexing problems of
the present and provide security for the future
of their institutions. No peoplo in the history
of tho world have been so well equipped for this
task as are the American people of today, nor
do I believe the world has ever known a peoplo
more ready to respond with loyal and devoted
support to public servants who really mean and
try to serve them. The tariff propaganda id and
has always been the fruitful mother of the most
pernicious brood ever fostered and nourished in
a free government. Government sanction to a
business advantage over one's neighbor is bad,
but the sordid selfishness engendered by its exer
cise is a thousand times worse. It fosters in the
individual, beyond all other influences the spirit
of graft and why men can see this effect in the
granting of rebates by corporations and can not
account. I am porsuaded that thoro will be a
chango of parties In tho national administration
noxt year and trust to seo a progroBaivo demo,
crat at tho helm.
n T h;?dA0Aro1Mnhn Alma, Nob.: Enclosed pleas
find $1.00 in payment of subscription for The
Commonor. I could not do without this cham
pion of tho people's cause. Wo know full woll
what tho present otrugglo for londcrshlp moans,
and In any contest between tho "interests" and
tho progressive principles advocated by Mr.
Bryan, you can count on us every day In the
year. Harmon and disharmony won't do. Wo
must have a Wilson, Clark or a Folk as our
standard bearer, if tho forces in this stato that
stand for Harmon and disharmony become suffi
ciently arousod from tholr drunken stupor so
an to road and study tho late primary olcctlon
returns, thoy Will find no great causo for re
joicing in them for their success noxt year.
Whilo there aro those hero who would sell their
principles for a mess of pottago, or official pie,
there aro also those In larger numbors who
would never countenance tho taking of a back
ward step from tho advnnced ground tho domo
cratic party now occupies, and among this clas
you may count mo every time.
T. J. Hlckey, Minneapolis, Minn. Please find
enclosed check for $1.00 to ronow rpy subscrip
tion. Kindly include this special offer of the
Weekly Enquirer and American Homestead.
You ask mo for an expression with reference
to presidential candidates, replying to this will
say any man who Is a real progressive man will
bo acceptable to mo. I cast my first vote for
Grovor Cleveland and had great hopes at that
time that he was a man who would roprosent
tho people but unfortunately llko every othor
president we have had since I have been a man,
has represented tho spoclal Interests and I only
hopo that I will have tho pleasuro of voting
for and scolng ono president olocted whose
sympathies are with and for tho peoplo. It
ooetnn, hotfCYcr, that TiutwltliSlUIlQing TUG Tact
of this all being loft with tho voter that each
time it comes to a test thoy woakon and fall
to do tholr duty. Tho Commonor is doing grand
work and whilo it does not ploaso tho metro
politan dailies of this country, tho metropoli
tan dallies do not please the people, and it Is
only a question of education until tho people
will appreciate Mr. Bryan and his efTorts and
they will realize what a grand and noblo work
he has been doing for tho past twenty years.
seo it' in the Protective tariff, betrays an obli-
fcriteSrt !l5Et WIST rt the aamo time, control faulty of men vtalon tor which I a. not
L. A. Ellis, Mina, Nov. I am very much in
terested In your endeavor to arouse tho com
mon peoplo in the matter of nominating the
next presidential capdidates. This Is' a matter
of vital Importance to the whole country. By
an act recently passed by tho congress, compell
ing publication of campaign contributions, thus
taking away a part of the power of the trusts
and special interests, they will and are en
deavoring to nominate tho candidate of each
of the leading parties. With this accomplished
they have beaten the law above referred to and
will set back on their haunches contented in
tho knowledge of the fact that no matter who Is
elected he will "belong to them. Tho special
interests must be beaten at the next nominating
convention if at all. It is to be hoped that
Senator La Follette will beat them in tho repub
lican convention and we (let every democrat
call himself we in this matter) democrats must
see to it that the people and not tho special
interests nominate our standard-bearer and he
should be such a man as will not accept special
or unusual aid or assistance from the special
interests during his campaign. This is the
point on which President Cleveland evidently
fell down. The interests saw early in tho cam
paign that he was going to be elected by the
common people and their only hope was to got
in and help and then make him bellevo "they
done it." It would seem they accomplished
their purpose, judging from his acts during his
last administration. We need a man who has
been tried In the balances and not found want
ing. Such a man, in my estimation is ex
Governor Folk of Missouri or Governor Wilson
of New Jersey. There are a few others who are
good men, but we democrats in the west (so
far as I am able to learn) think the ones named
above much the strongest. May the good work
of Tho Commoner go on and on until every
democrat in tho country is aroused to action in
the selection of our next standard-bearer feeling
that if they name the right man success if
assured.
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