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) VOL. XXIV—No. 1206. ATLANTA, GA., SATURDAY, APRIL 15,1899. Price $2 Per Year. mu of Tie Big Mo. Gigantic Combinations of Capital Which It Is Urged Congress Control for the Good of the People. “Within the last six months articles of incorporation have been taken out by more than one hundred companies of ab normal capitalization, which are designed to ‘take over’ and concentrate the busi ness of scattered companies in the vari ous fields of industry.’’ So says the New York Ilerald, and it concludes an extend ed review of the most important indus trial combinations now existing and pop ularly denominated as trusts, with the following recapitulation: Capital. The oil trusts $153,000,000 Steel and Iron 347,650.000 Coal combines 161,750,000 The gas trust 432,771.000 Havemeyer's sugar trust 215,000,000 Cigarettes and Tobacco 108,500.000 Control of the telephone 56.720,000 The alcoholic trusts 67,300,000 Electrical combinations 130,327,000 Miscellaneous trusts 1,349,250,000 Grand total $2,717,768,000 The Herald’s article is reproduced by National Corporation Reporetr of Chi cago. The 63 miscellaneous trusts named in it are capitalized at llgures ranging from $150,000,000 for the flour trust, now forming, to $1,750,000 for the Rhode Isl and Horseshoe Company. The titles of these organizations indicate trusts in lea ther, tobacco (plug), crackers, starch, corn, harvesters, lumber, rubber, dressed. beef, sheet copper, tobacco, paper, acids and chemicals, malting, silverware, lead, knit goods, sash and doors, wall-paper, cigarettes, typewriters, window glass, caskets, crockery, windows and doors, smelting, ribbon, gossamer rubber, axes, bolts and nuts, lithography, tissue paper, rock salt, celluloid., saws, rope and twine, thread, furniture, stockyards, matches, ice, plate-glass, cartridges, menhaden, linotypes, refrigerators (forming), land en velopes, type, soda fountains, tacks, pot teries. marbles, packing and provisions. How much actual value of property is represented by the $2,717,768,000 of stocks and bonds of these combinations The Herald considers difficult to tell: “When an individual manufacturer or miner sells his property to the promoters of a combine ho naturally puts a high value on it. When the combine then or ganizes into a trust, and issues its secur ities—or insecurities—.to be sold to the public, it usually gives about three for one in paper, so that the originally high valuation is trebled in the capitalization. This makes enough to go round, and it only remains to get the shares listed on a stock exchange and rig the market, un til they are unloaded on the public.” The federal anti-trust law (known as the Sherman law and recently held by the supreme court to apply to the joint traf fic association) does not appear to inter fere with the growth of industrial com binations, and the newspapers find the situation a fruitful subject for comment. “The trusts are inimical to public pol icy, not only because they are monopolis tic, and in restraint of competition, but because they oppress labor and put on erous burdens on the whole people in shape of enhanced prices. There has been Latterly scarcely a trust formed the first step of which was not the shutting down of works and thu~ limiting the pro duction and reducing the number of wage earners. The next step has been to put prices up. The sugar trust, for instance, pays regularly a 12-per cent, div idend and at times an extraordinary one, upon many millions of capitalization, which has been watered. This extraordi nary dividend is paid by the 70,000.000 con sumers for the sole benefit of the part ners in the trust.- If the government was to attempt to put a tax on sugar equal to the aggregate of the dividends paid A VISION OF HOME. TROUBLESOME MA^AAFA. With Germany favoring his aspirations for royalty; Mataafa has once more caused trouble in Samos. For eleven years he has been an apnoyance to the powers. In 1888 he rebelled against King Tamasese, was victorious and became king. The treaty cowers deposed him in favor of Malietoa. In 1893 he rebelled again and was exiled. by the sugar trust, the popular protest would be so great and general as to al most threaten revolution Yet the peo ple would cheerfully pay taxes for the support of the government which under no circumstances should they be obliged to pay for the enrichment of the few members of a monopolistic trust. Again, a lesser affair, though it concerns a large proportion of the community, is the pa per trust, to which we referred to re cently. The readers of newspapers alone pay in the aggregate to the trust about $2,000,00v a year, wnich it represented by the trust’s increased price of paper used by the newspapers alone. The buyers of books, of all printed paper, must pay tri bute to,this combination of dealers that, aided by prohibitory duties, has killed fair and open competition and arbitrar ily fixed the price of paper to suit itself. • “If congress had any genuine regard for the interests of the people, or if it were sincere of purpose respecting their com mon welfare, or in regard to the proper protection' of labor, it would promptly transfer to the free list every product controlled by a conscienceless and preda tory trust .which reduces production, cuts off forking people from work and wages, a1K1 Increases prices to the tens of mil-* lions of consumers. Trusts should be treated by congress as outlaws with no rights'to be respected by anybody. DICKENS’S EDEN. The Boom Town in* Missouri from Which He Drew His “Martin Chuzzlewit” Now a Wilderness. Charles Dickens, in his novel entitled “Martin Chuzzlewit,” the only work of fiction he wrote dealing with the United States and its inhabitants, mentions a town on the Mississippi river which he calls Eden. The village upon which he satirically bestowed this name was neith er really known under that appellation, nor was it by any means as pleasant and beautiful a place as the word Eden would naturally imply. Quite the contrary; as will be readily understood by those who read the story mentioned. Martin Chuzzlewit, investing all of his money—$150—In several lots in Eden, un der representations that it was a city of splendor and magnificence, a town where business was ever at the height of activ ity. felt proud that he had been so fortu nate as to become a landed proprietor in such a community, but when he ar rived there and found only a small vil lage, situated in a swampy district, with a limited number of rude log cabins and other structures standing in a clearing, instead of the many business houses, splendid dwellings, beautiful parks, churches, academies and theatres, he was greatly disappointed and immeditely real ize^ that he had been imposed upon. The place Dickens had in mind in his Eden, and where his chief character, as well as hundreds of other men whose names are not celebrated in story, met with such great disappointment, was a scattered settlement situated on the Mis sissippi river, at a point half way be tween Hannibal Mo., and Quincy. 111., and was called Marion City, a village which if it had attained to the Importance designed by those who urged the project, would have been the greatest city known to the ancient or modern world—so high soared the ambitious minds of those men who planned the town, and who exerted themselves to the utmost In trying to make their scheme successful. But both because of the unexpected operations of nature and other events which have not been considered the city which assumed such pleasing proportions in their imagi nations never grew* to more consequence than a mere country village, where the inhabitants, instead of having the expect ed paved streets and walks of adamant, dally trudged about in mud and water, William Muldrow came from Muldrow’s Hill, in Kentucky, and from his first ap pearance in Missouri engaged In all kinds of speculations. It soon dawned on his mind that near the location would be a good place for a city, and being a very active, enthusiastic and spirited man, he allowed no time to elapse from the con ception of the project to the commence ment of the necessary work. * It has often been claimed that the plans and operations of this man suggested ta Mark Twain the illustrious Colonel Mulberry Sellers. Mark Twain, coming In contact with more than one man like William Muldrow*. probably combined the n^ost striking traits of them all in his character of Sellers: Traveling east with several chosen as sistants William Muldrow endeavored to persuade capitalists to invest money in his city, and urged the *poorer classes to move thither. Possessed of the splendid maps, and being something of a ready speaker, insinuating and of great force of character, he immediately met with encouraging recognation. Lots in Marion City were disposed of at a pre mium. and many esteemed themselves very fortunate if able to obtain ground there. Howrever, by adroit and careful management, Mul drow* succeeded in satisfying the demands at every purchase, and having an exten- sive^country over w’hich he could extend the limits of his town, if necessary, he could sell almost as much ground as any one wished to buy. Large amounts of money continued to come into his pos session; lots in a desert swamp and wil derness were assigned to many eager Purchasers by the wholesale, and when he returned to the place he had so ex tensively advertised the numberless peo ple who held deeds to property in a vis ionary city were scattered far and wide. In the spring og 1836 the first event oc curred which was destined to eventually cause the total abandonment and de struction of Marion City. The great river, swelled by heavy rains and melt ing snow, rose to an unusual height and completely flooded the town. A broad sheet of rushing water stretched from the bluffs of Illinois to those of Missouri. People became disgusted with the place and began to leave. William Muldrow, with the assistance of several influential men, used every argument, every prom ise, to stay the disaffection and save the tow*n. He partially succeeded, and had it not been that other occurrences over which he had no control again excited the inhabitants, it cannot be doubted that Marion City would have continued to live. CONTENTS OF THIS NUMBER. Page 1.—Growth of the Big Trusts—Hon eymoons in New York. Page 2.—With Lee in Virginia, new serial. Page 8.—Great South: News Notes—Build Factories—Native Copper in Abund ance—Miscellany. Page 4. — Woman’s Kingdom: Seeing Royalty Under Adverse Circumstan ces—The 8pring Renovation—Our Let ter Box—The Visitor Comes. Page 5.—Kingdom Continued: In the Book Salon—Rudyard Kipling—How to Care for Laces. Page 6.—Editorial: "Seeing Life"—Rules in Case of Fire—The High Tide of Speculation—'1 he Louisiana Exposi tion—What the President Costs—The Great S. R. R. System—Prize Essays. Page 7.—Some Georgians of Our Day. Page 8.—Our Boys and Girls: Jack the Inventor—Papa’s Words. Page 9.—Youths’ Page Continued: Sun day School Lesson—The Child of the Fields—A Lassie's Prayer—Puzzler. Page 10.—Confederate Vets’ Page: Con federate Reunion—Incidents of the Civil War—Will Put Flowers on Graves—Headstones for Heroes—Sol diers’ Home to Be Sold Again—How Tennesseeans Shoot—Have Seen Hor rors of War—Miscellany. Page 11.—The Glass Dagger, serial—Gems in Verse. Page 12.—Held in Stout Grip, Dr. Tal- mage's Sermon. Honeymoons m Hew Yon. The maximum and minimum Cost to a Bridal Couple in Some of the Greatest Hotels in the World. “About ten thousand honeymoons are spent in New York annually,” said the manager of one ol^ the big hostelrles. “We gauge the figures very nearly right, I fancy. New York is the Mecca for blushing brides and bridegrooms from the far corners of this country. The city with its gorgeous hotels and amuse ment palaces has no rival in the affec tions of the newly wedded pairs from out of town. We find our bridal suits in con stant demand.” “Is a New York honeymoon too expen sive for a man with a modest income, or can it be brought down to an econom ical basis?” asktd the reporter. “That question need not be a vexed one.” replied the hotel man. “A honey moon here can he as costly as the purse can buy, or It can be spent for an amaz ingly small amount, if you will take into consideration the luxury afforded by our modern hotels. For instance, not long ago a young western multi-millionaire brought his bride here to one of our pal ace hotels. It cost him $7ov a day for liv ing expenses. He spent that amount with the hotel people. “In the hotel at the same time were a young couple from a New England town whose daily bills amounted to $11, which included their meals in the hotel. Using these figures, which are entireley accu rate, one can readily see that luxurious living here is not so frightfully exorbi tant as our out-of-town friends imagine. These two couples were at the most ex pensive hotel in the cl 13*. which by no means insures the fact that it is the best. There are some half dozen other hotels quite as good and far cheeaper. Of course there is no| the magnificent glit ter. Besides the young people do de light in sending the crested stationery from the famous hotel to dazzle the eyes of the home folks.” " Seven hundred dollars seemed a fabu lous sum for two people to spend in one day for a living. Was the hotel manager a rival of Munchausen, or did the west ern millionaire steal his ideas of a honey moon from the magnificence of the “Ara bian Nights?” Investigation proved that the young westerner had cultivated an unquench able thirst for modern luxury. Fortune had kindly relieved him of all thought for the morrow, so without regard to cost he ordered what suited his fancy: A glance at his bills and the following items were gleaned: State chamber Waldorf-Astoria, per day $500.00 Private dining room 50.00 Adjoining room for maid, electric connection 15.00 Board for maid * 6.00 Meals, wines, ere.* 100.00 Carriage, exclusive use 10.00 Tips 5.00 Room and board for valet 10.00 Flowers for rooms 4.00 Total $700.00 The state chamber in the Waldorf-As toria is the most costly in the house. It is not of great size, but in magnificence rivals the most famous bedchambers of European palaces. The room is furnished and decorated in the style of Francis I. The four-pos ter bedstead, with its canopy, is an ex act reproduction in walnut of the origi nal in the museum at Cluny. The cost of the, bed alone is $3,500. The prie dieu in the room cost $1,000. Draperies, carpets, tapestries and paintings frame in rare bric-a-brac and make the room, one of beauty and splendor. The chamber is one of the statf^ suit, especially reserved for the reception of ~ (Continued on Page f’lve.) DBTUCT PRUT