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Trusts Vs. Labor

Trusts Vs. Labor image
Parent Issue
Day
26
Month
August
Year
1892
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The foUowing from the speech of Senator Vest of July 26, and printed in The Congressional Record of July 27, is good evidence of the effects of trusts, combines, etc., npon labor. In a previous speech the senator had printed the list of "100 tariff trusts" as prepared by Hon. John De Witt Warner for the New York World. As written there the raain object was to show that tariffs foster trusts and that trusts invariably advanoe prices or at least retard their natural decline. The object of the new matter introduced by Senator Vest is to show that trusts by keeping milis idle throw men out of employment and by increasing the number of competitors for each job of work tend to lower wages: "Cordage Trust (including binding twine, cables, rope, twine, etc.)- Tariff: Binding twine, .7 cent per pound; other twine, 2 cents per pound; hemp cables and cordage, 2} cents per pound; other cables and cordage, 1% cents. "The Cordage trust, which was formed in October, 1887, furnishes a good illnatration of the way in which trusts affect labor. As the trust gained control of more faetones it not only was enabled to limit production and advance prices, but had power to díctate terms to its employees, lt was not until 1890, when the trust was reorganized and when it secured control of eleven cordage factories in Canada, that its power over production and labor became supreme. Aside from the rnaintaining of high prices, which of itself limits the use of cordage and therefore the demand for labor, the present condition of the milis owned and controlled by the trusts is sufficient evidence of the devastating effects upon production and labor of this trust, which has the following record of lockouts and wage reductions in order to insure sufficient profit at the milis, kept running to pay dividends to the owners of the rest thus hired to stay idle. On an average it takes about 100 employees to attend to 100 spindles; these, in the binder twine milis, are mostly girls, and in cordage and twine milis mostly boys and men: Tucker & Carter Cordage company, Brooklyn, 000 spindles. Not running full, bat little of time; averages perhapa 300 spindJes. L. Waterbury & Co., Brooklyn, 700 or 800 Bpindles. Running most of time. Wllliain Wall's Sons, Brooklyn, 400 or 500 spindles. Entirely shut down in May, 1S92, and part of all the time. Elizabetti Cordage company, New Jersey, C00 spindles. Burned out in 1891 and not since ebuilt. Oeorge C. Pooley & Sons, Euffato, 50 spïnSJ.es'. Closed part of the time. Xenia Twine and Cordage company, Ohio, l'fi spindles. Probably running most' of the l: .ie. 1. Rinek's Soria, Easton, Pa., 75 spindles Probably running reeularly. Akron Twine and Cordage company, Akron O., 50 spindles. Recently resold to forme owner; not now in the trust. Victoria Cordage company, Dayton, Ky„ 100 spindles. Probubly running regularly. Hi R. Lewis & Co., Philadelpuia, 60 or 80 spin dies. Has been shut down some time. Baumgardner, Woodward & Co., Philadel fhia, 50 spindles. Was dismantled by trust. New York Cordage company, New York, 3 spindles. Was dismantled by trust. Atlas Cordage company, New Oorleans, 3o spindles. Was dismantled by trust. Randall, Goodale & Co., Boston, 50 spindles Has been shut down for some time. Sweall & Day Cordage company, Boston, 500 spindles. Probably running regularly. Boston Cordage company. Boston, 700 spindles. Not running; closed more than one month ago. Standard Cordage company, Boston, 700 spindles. Not running; closed more than one month ago. Day Cordage company, Cambridge, Mass., 60 spindles. Dismantled by trust. William Deering & Co., Chicago, 200 spindles. Probably running regularly. Field Cordage company, Xenia, O., 130 spindles. Closed recently. Miamlsburg Binder Twine and Cordage company, Ohio, 200 spindles. Closed three weeks ago. Galveston Rope and Twine company, Texas, 75 spindles. Closed since June 15. Sufifolk Cordage company. Boston, 300 spindlea. Ru nning regularly. Peru miils, Indiana, 40 spindles. Dismantled by trust. Hanover Cordage company, Pennsylvania, 75 spindles. Closed indeflnitely three weeks asro. Middletown Twine company, Ohio, 130 spindles. Closed recently. Ohio Cordage company, Xenia, O., 100 spindles. Closed July 2. New Bedford Cordage company, Massachusetts, 230 spindles. Not running since June 1. Lawrence Rope works, New York, 200 spindles. Runuini?. Peoría Cordage eompany, Indiana, 100 spindles. Running. American Manufacturing (bagging) company, New Vork. 200 spindles. Not running since Jan. 1. Miamisburg Cordage company, Ohio, 100 spindles. Recently acquired by National Cordage company and closed July 1. "Of the eleven concerns in Canada belonging to the National Cordage trust probably only about two-thirds are running at all regularly. There, as here, the tariff enables the trust to keep up prices and make sufiicient profits to pay Dig dividends on idle milis and to purchase at exorbitant prices establishments ;hat threaten to undersell the trast. The ;rust also controls by agreement the factories of W. L. Boone, Jr., Brooklyn, and Joseph L. Podd, Paterson, manufacturera of binding twine and cordage machinery, so that these companies, which control and hold valuable patents, cannot sen corüage machines to nonmembers of the trust. This decreases ;he output of these machines and throws abor out of employment." But perhaps the worst evidence against :his trust as to its treatment of labor is ound in its deals with Mr. John Good, who has one of the largest and best eqnipped cordage milis in the country. ?his mili is situated at Ravenswood, L. ., and when running ernploys 300 perons. Por some time previous to Nov. , 1891, the Cordage trust had been payng Mr. Good $100,000 per year'to keep nis mili idle. On Nov. 2, 1891, this mount was increased to $200,000, and he agreement was carried out until April 4, 1892, when Mr. Good returned he trust's check, because at the high nïces at which cordage had been selling ie f ound that 'he conld make more nioney )v oiifiratiucr ids mili.

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Subjects
Ann Arbor Argus
Old News