THE Temuka Leader THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1903. INDUSTRIAL TRUSTS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 4016, 26 February 1903, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1903. INDUSTRIAL TRUSTS.

We learn by cable that an injunction has been granted against the Beef Trust of Chicago. The members of the trust had agreed not to bid against each other at cattle sales, and generally speaking to act in concert, and this has been declared' by the Supreme Court an illegal practice, but how the Court can prevent it is more than we can understand. If a number of buyers of cattle or anything else agree amongst themselves that one shall buy for the whole of them, and all except that one refrain from bidding we cannot sec how any power on earth can make them bid. The value of .the injunction, therefore depends on the strength of the Trust. If the Trust is powerful, and embraces dll the dealers in meat, the Supreme Court cannot force them to buy if they wish to refrain from doing.so. One of them can buy for the whole, and then divide the cattle amongst the members of the Trust. We cannot see how that can be prevented. This is a poor look out for American farmers. If dealers in meat can fix their own prices, and no doubt they can if they all agree, then the poor American farmer will undoubtedlybe fleecedf The Trust system appears to have reached an acute degree in America, and how it can be put down is more than we can see. Combinations having written compacts, or as they are called articles of association can be declared illegal, and a law made that would punish persons entering into such compacts, but supposing all those engaged in any given industry form a company of the whole, and run the whole under one direction no law can stop that. There is at present a Bill before the American Parliament dealing with trusts, and no doubt it must be pretty drastic, for Mr Rockfeller, of. kerosene oil fame, has threatened members with death and daggers if they pass it, but we cannot see how it can stop combinations so long as those interested . can agree amongst thems.elves. While these things are going on in America the system is taking root in New, Zealand: The Millers’ Associa-

tion has been in existence for some years now, but it can be inferred from recent developments that they are not an over happy faintly. A great deal of noise has been made concerning this association, but so far we have been unable to see that facts justify expressions of disgpproval of it. If the millers, like the meat dealers of Chicago, attempt to fix the price of wheat, we certainly would be the first to condemn them, butso long as they only want fair 'interest on their capital we can see nothing wrong in their conduct. The laborer is worthy of his hire, and so is the miller, and so long as the latter asks only fair remuneration for converting wheat into flour no one ought to complain. It has not been proved so far that the millers have made exorbitant charges. If flour has gone up so has wheat, and it is impossible that flour could be as cheap now as when wheat was two shillings a bushel. THE IMPLEMENT TRUST. A large combine is .just now in course of being formed in this colony, but the principles on which it is being based are such as no one find fault with. The combine to which we refer is the amalgamation of some of the engineering firms and agricultural implement makers in the colony, the names so far mentioned being Messrs Booth & Macdonald, p. ,& 1). Duncan, Reid & Gray, and Andrews & Bevan. The various businesses of these firms will be taken at valiuation, and shares allotted to them on that basis. The businesses will go on as heretofore, but they will all be under one direction, and thus there will he no local competition. This might have been objected to only that a new principle has been introduced which makes employees and customers participators in the ' benefits of it. That principle is cooperation. The actual shareholders who have their money invested in the concern will, after paying all liabilities, get a dividend of 6 per cent. This is certainly not too much. No one can complain of that. They take the maximum risk, and they ought to have a profit of 6 per cent. .After the dividend is paid the remaining profits are divided amongst the employees, and the purchasers of goods. Say, for instance, a farmer bought a plough for £2O, and at the end of the year the amount to be divided amongst the purchasers of goods came .to 5 , per cent, the farmer would get 20 shillings back. It would work exactly on the same principle as the Farmers’ Co-opera-tive is working at the present time. The great gain expected from the amalgamation of these firms is the' great saving in expenses which will be effected thereby. For instance, almost all, if not all, these firms have at present agents and canvasses in South Canterbury,; they are paying rents for buildings, and inking expenses in other directions. This is the position throughout the whole colony. Each has an army of caqvassers and agents ; each has rents to pay, and each has to incur expenses which we know nothing at all of at present. At headquarters, ■too, each has to maintain a staff of clerks, managers, foremen, anil so on which can be greatly reduced as soon as the amalgamation takes place It is plain from the recital of those facts that the cost of production will be greatly reduced, anl that thus without increasing the cost, to the consumer the profits will be larger, but there are other wars in which this combination will be’able to reduce the cost of production. They will be rich and powerful, and , can command any ' amount af capital. They will thus he able to acquire the best labor-saving machinery; they will purchase, the raw material in larger quantities, and get it cheaper, and so ..on, but the best of it all is that they can econamise labor. For instance, all the works will be kept going as at present, but not necessarilyon the same lines. For instance, ‘ Messrs Booth & Macdonald may go in exclusively for disc harrows, windmills, etc.; Messrs Reid & Gray may make ploughs, drills, etc., a speciality ; Messrs Andrews & Bevan may make winnowing machines and so on.' Each of them would then be making the same aeticle by hundreds, instead of an occasional one as at present, and it stands to reason that in this way the cost of production will be greatly lessened. Thus in several ways the cost : of production will he lessened, and the purchasers will get the benefit of it, because they will share in the profits. This is a very large. and important subject, and consequently we cannot do justice to it in one article. It is certainly the most far-seeing and the ablest proposal hitherto made for the development of our industrial resources, and the credit for it is due to the genius and masterly abilities of Mr T. J. Mcßride, a Canadian gentleman, who has recently settled in Christchurch. Mr Mcßride , has been for wears Australian manager. of. the Massey-Harris Company,' but has now retired, and .has . taken up his residence in Christchurch. We shall have more to say respecting Mr Mcßride and this scheme on a future occasion, and meantime we can only tender congratulations on the splendid scheme so ably conceived ' and brought to a successful issue. COMPLIMENTARY. Sometime ago the following advertisement appeared, in our columns ALL ALTERATIONS to STANDING ADVERTISEMENTS MUST REACH THIS OFFICE not later than NOON on the DAY PREVIOUS to that on which they are REQUIRED TO APPiEAR. • - ■ v «>;* After a few issues the words “ quire “ to appear ” accidentally fell out when the paper was being made up, and it then read ALL ALTERATIONS to STANDING ADVERTISEMENTS MUST REACH THIS OFFICE not later tlian NOON on the DAY PREVIOUS to that on which they are REOur junior devil noticed this, and came to the conclusion that the prefix RE was not a proper termination for the advertisement, so he decided on completing it by adding the letters “ CEIVED.” The advertisement then read as follows • ALL ALTERATIONS to STANDING ADVERTISEMENTS MUST REACH THIS OFFICE not later than NOON on the DAY PREVIOUS to that on which they are RECEIVED. The latter has been made the sub’- , ject of much harmless banter by our contemporaries, and we are not

surprised at it. But what does it all show. It simply shows that genius finds an outlet for its corruscations of unalloyed humour in the columns, of this paper, for none but a humorist of the first water could have turned so prosaic a notice as that which appeared first of all, into one which has provoked laughter from end,to end of the colony, and possibly will in due course travel far beyond it. We have known the humorous ebullitions of this paper to reach the columns of the London press, and we shall not he surprised if in due course the dome of St. Paul re-echo the laughter caused in the world’s metropolis by this last but not least effort of our junior devil. People will bo like that character in Cymhelinc, “ with his eyes in flood with laugh- “ ter but does not Ben Jenson say that laughter is “ the only re- “ ceipt to make sorrow sink.” If, therefore this paper succeeds occasionally in sinking sorrow it appears to us that it performs an important function. All men are not so gifted that they can raise a laugh. In Henry IV, Shakespeare says, “ The ” brain of this foolish compounded “ clay, man, is not able to invent “ anything that tends to laughter.” That is not so with our junior devil. He can command not only the mild “ laugh up your sleeve,” bpt explosions olfiinarticulate sounds, accompanied by abnormal facial disturbance, and convulsive chucklings betokening- an uncontrollable degree of pleasure a-nd merriment. And when such is the junior devil, what must the old man himself be ? We are proud of him for it is the knowledge that a genius like this is employed on our staff that makes this paper so widely read. The very fact that a large number of our contemporaries has taken this thing up proves the extraordinary closeness with which they read our columns, for not only are our leading articles, and general news columns scanned with eager avidity, but even the advertisemerits in it are perused with equal earnestness. They know the pearls are to be found somewhere, anywhere in it, and they deem it prudent t.ot to lose any of them. We acknowledge the compliment thus paid to us, but we are certain that mir excellent contemporaries will unanimously admit that they are only the debt they owe to genius. That being so pur native modesty suggests to us that we have said enough, excepting that we may lawfully and without egotism point out that a newspaper so well,' read must be a splendid advertising, medium.