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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (May 22, 1908)
TtrCVtry ' "flt " - T1tWlW4M Vwrfr"rjr'WM y t- .rTpf-r' ' vi"f" Pli MAY 22, 1908 The Commoner. 3 ! ' f "WW1PfPllWIl raGH TARIM? ON COAIi OIL The Rochester (N. Y.) Democrat recently said: "It is worthy of notice that the two most powerful, wealthy and grasping trusts in this country are the Standard Oil company and the anthracite monopoly; yet there is no important duty on petroleum or hard coal. With these articles on the free list, their output and sale are held in control by trusts, prices are marked up arbitrarily, and the public is powerless to resist the extortion. "It is conceded that the tariff should be revised, but not from the false standpoint on which Senator LaFollette has planted himself. The free-traders are fond of saying that 'the tariff is the mother of trusts,' but they invar iably dodge when requested to account for tho existence of trusts which have no tariff protec tion." Referring to the Rochester paper's editorial the San Francisco Star makes this interesting comment: So, there is no import duty on petroleum? It would seem so from careless reading of the Dingley law. But the careful reader, the man who knows before ho asserts, will find this joker at the end of paragraph 626: "Provided, That if there be imported into the United States crude petroleum, or the pro ducts of crude petroleum produced in any coun try which imposes a duty on petroleum or its products exported from the United States, there shall in such cases be levied, paid, and collected a duty upon said crude petroleum or its pro ducts so imported equal to the duty imposed by such country." The effect of that joker is that petroleum has greater protection than almost any other article in the Dingley law. The only noteworthy competitor in tho petroleum business is Russia, which has a surplus of petroleum to export. But for that joker in the Dingley law and it was in the "free trade" Wilson-Gorman law also Russia could sell petroleum in this coun try cheaper than it is sold by the Standard Oil company. The effect of the joker is that Russian oil brought to this country must pay the same tariff tax as American oil exported to Russia from 10.0,. to 200 per cent. During the oast six years pome Russian oil has been brought to this country, the tariff duties being 5.4 cents a gallon on crude and 2.34 cents a gallon on Tefined oil. By? means of the joker that prevents Rus sian competition, the Standard Oil trust has been able to charge American consumers about two or two aiid a half cents a gallon more than it could have done if petroleum had been on the free list. Now, if the Rochester Democrat will get a table showing the amount of refined oil used in this country, and will carefully multiply the1 number of gallons by 2.5 cents, it will see that glnce the Dingley law went into effect it has made a free gift to the Standard Oil trust of several 'million dollars. San Francisco Star. W &t r CONSERVING NATIONAL RESOURCES , , On -another page will be found tho presi dent's speech at the conference called by him to consider the conservation of national re sources. It was an epoch making speech. It clearly pointed out the waste that Is going on, the danger of exhaustion of our coal, our iron ore and our. timber. The subjects consid ered are of the first importance and the confer ence is likely to initiate a movement which will bring the executives together on stated occasions and stimulate the various states to act together lor the advancement of national reforms and for the advancement also of those reforms which are within the sphere of the state. The president has performed a distinct ser vice in convening the. conference and his speech admirably presents the importance of the ques tions brought to the attention of the con ference. tC 5 w A COUNTRY MERCHANT'S ANSWER The following editorial is taken from the Omaha World-Herald: "A country merchant of Nebraska has writ ten a letter to the 'Prosperity club' boomers of St. Louis, which the World-Herald believes en titled to a wider hearing than those who are at the head of that movement to 'discourage agitation and demagoguery' will be inclined tc give it. Tho letter Is from C. A. Lord of Shu bert, a dealer -In hardware, implements and furniture, and -was written In response to a cir- cular soliciting his support. Mr. Lord thought fully sent a carbon copy of his letter to this newspaper, saying: 'On reading your editorial last night, I decided to send you a copy for publication, believing that my experience has been that of most hardware men and merchants, and that they feel much as I do about this question.' "Mr. Lord's letter is as follows, and wo commend it to the careful reading not only of all merchants, but all of tho merchants' customers: " 'Shubert, Neb., May 11, 1908. Tho National Prosperity Association, E. C. Sim mons, Chairman, St. Louis, Mo.: Gentle men Your circular, explaining the motives of your association, its purposes and inten tions, has been noted very carefully by tho undersigned. Your purposes may be non political, as you say, but to a man out hero in Nebraska, who remembers tho 1896 and 1900 campaigns, your declarations have tho same old sulphur smell. Your very first request 'to keop hands off of railroad legislation' smacks wonderfully of a 'cor poration cormorant squeal. " 'If I order the house of which your chairman is president, to ship mo a ten pound sash weight tho charges will bo 80 cents. If I should then Increase my order to 150 pounds tho charges on tho wholo thing would be 27 cents per hundred, or 41 cents. " 'In tho faco of such conditions, do you think It well to let up on railroad legis lation, and 'let well enough alone?' " 'Explain these rates to mo and justify them, and I will join your association and Immediately become a 'prosperity' shouter. But if you can not do it, I will expect you to take down your sign, and admit that corporation legislation has only begun. " 'Why this sickness? Why this 'typhoid fever' you mention as tho cause of our recent financial troubles? I have been In busindss here seven years, and in that time I find that one-half or moro of tho goods I purchase I am compelled to buy of trusts, without getting tho benefit of one bit of competition. A Deoring binder, for Instance, that I could buy for $85 then, costs me now $116.50 In car lots. Wo made a profit then of $25 on an Investment of $85. Wo make a profit now of $17.50 on an Investment of $116.50. This Is true of all goods mado and sold by the International Harvester company of America. " 'The retailor's competition Is sharper that it ever was, but at tho same time tho trusts have hemmed him In with oppres sive exactions, both In the goods he buys and freight rates, until he acts In an auto matic manner, which makes us feel; if wo do not look, like the old 'Punch and Judy' that first amused us In the long ago. This condition may be good enough for people like Mr. E. C. Simmons, who has made his stake, but it doesn't suit us younger fel lows, who have ours to make. We want a Roosevelt or Bryan at the head of our na ' tlon's affairs, surrounded by legislators in full sympathy with them, and for this wo will contend, prosperity or no prosperity. And if these recent conditions exist yet for another ten years, and temporary prosperity never shows its timid head, we will feel that our fight has been made for the bene fit of posterity. If our children are not rich enough to claim the flabby hand of a foreign prince, we want them at least to bo free to start in business for themselves in free, competitive America, to win a name and a fortune in honorable business meth ods. Wo do not want them to have to cringe and fawn under the iron will of hard faced trust magnates for a job. " 'I believe, gentlemen, you will find these are the sentiments of a majority. of the Nebraska hardware merchants. " 'Yours for the competitive system from tho bottom up, and for a permanent prosperity, such as will benefit not only selfish us, but our children and our chil dren's children. C. A. LORD.' "Mr. Lord has pretty thoroughly exposed the jug-handled kind of 'prosperity' for which the 'Prosperity clubs' are getty ready to shout. It is the same old 'let well enoagh alone' brand, which pinches the retailer and robs the con sumer, while it makes a comparatively few corporation magnates enormously rich. It is the same brand which puts dishonesty and bribery at a premium. It is the same brand which brought on a severe panic, throwing more than a million men out of work, at a time when tho country had and wan producing moro wealth than ovor before in its history. It Is tho samo brand which now, in a time of depression, Is raising trust prices on tho necessities of life, and is preparing to follow this up with a gen eral Incrcaao in freight rates, In violation of both tho anti-trust law and tho railroad regu lation law passed only a little moro than a year ago. And the real purposo of tho 'Prosperity clubs,' so far as this newspaper Is ablo to Judge, is first to hypnotize public opinion Into thinking theso Increased prices and rates aro a good thing, and second to help elect Mr. Taft, to tho ond that there will bo no moro 'harmful inter ference' with trust and railroad privileges." tv v t v AND WHAT WAS THE SLOGAN? The following article, which originally ap peared in the Now Castle (Pa.) Horald, is taken from the Beavor Falls (Pa.) Weekly Review: "The farmers of Lawronco county aro having no trouble in getting plonty of men to work this spring. Every morning scores of foreigners and many Americans apply for positions at many of tho farms In this vicinity. They are paid 'only seventy-five cents a week and aro glad to work at that. Well-to-do farmers have hired four or fivo mon at this wago and aro not doing any work thomsolves, merely ovorseolng It. This is tho lowest rate of wages paid farm hands in ro cent years. The omployes are given thoir board, however." Lot us see what was tho slogan? Was it "Four years moro of tho full dinner pall?" 147 IN FORTY DAYS F. Greenland, Cooperstown, N. D. Enclosed find check for $15.00 In pay ment of one year's subscription (or twenty-five copies of Tho Commoner to bo sent to persons named in enclosed list. Theso make in all 147 paid up now subscribers. Tho democrats of this county annreclato the work Tho Com moner is doing tor tno people's cause, u, t , -' DEMOCRATIC STATE CONVENTIONS MINNESOTA Tho democratic state convention for Mln npsota met at St. Paul May 14. Tho friends of Governor Johnson were in complete control and elected tho following delegates at largo: F. O. Winston, Minneapolis; W. S. Hammond, St. -James; Frank A. Day, Fairmont; Swan Turnblad, Minneapolis; Daniel A. Lawlor, St. Paul; T. D. O'Brien, St. Paul; Martin O Brlen, Crookston; A. C. Weiss, Duluth. District delegates were chosen as follows: First, L. L. Brown, J. F. Cook; Second, J. C. Wiso, Dr. E. A. Frltsche; Third, A. A. Poehler, Julius A. Coller; Fourth, R. T. O'Conner, J. O. Arrason; Fifth, E. J. Conroy, John W. Pauly; Sixth, Dr. P. A. Silbert, John Rolchert; Seventh, J. Drlscoll, R. G. Farrington; Eighth, Martin Hughes, John Dwan; Ninth, C. A. Fullar, H. L. Shirle. The indorsement of Governor Johnson is In the following words: In Governor John A. Johnson, Minnesota presents to tho nation a democratic candidate for president of ability, in tegrity and honor, a constructive statesman, who holds no brief from any class, one who from early youth has been a wage-earner, whose pri vate life has been of such purity, vigor and earnestness as to win him the love, respect, and confidence of all who know him. In public life ho has by his virtue won the admiration of the people of his state and nation, regardless of condition of life, or political faith. We, there fore, instruct our delegates to the national dem cratlc convention to vote as a unit for him, and continue to so vote as long as necessary to secure tho nomination of John A. Johnson as the candidate for president. WYOMING An Associated Press dispatch under dato 'of Cheyenne, Wyo., May 14, follows: "The democratic state convention today selected dele gates to tho national convention and instructed for William J. Bryan. Resolutions were adopted favoring the election of United States senators by direct vote of the people; favoring an amend ment to the Sherman anti-trust law excepting labor unions from the effect of Its provisions, and opposing tho forest reserve policy of the present national administration." a B I . ! I A ;H (s ClMf ii tm iiWmhi itoimlwiiii