People's Pilot, Volume 6, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 August 1896 — WHO OWNS IT? [ARTICLE]

WHO OWNS IT?

Does This Country Belong to Americans or to Foreigners. Southern Mercury: It is high time for the American people to wake up to the fact that this country is going into the hands of foreign money lenders, and they will soon control It, if they do not already own a majority of the railroads, factories, breweries, furnaces, etc. Only contemplate for a moment the vast Interests now held by foreigners: Sixty per cent of the stocks and bonds of the vast Pennsylvania railroad system is said to be owned in Europe. Nearly all the Illinois Central railroad, extending from Chicago to New Orleans, with great city properties and branches and laterals, is owned in Holland. Great ownership In the Immense properties of the New York Central railroad oompany, and all its vast railroad connections, is held in Europe, A controlling interest in the Great Northern railroad, running from Lake Superior to the Pacific ocean, is owned in England. A controlling interest-la the Northern Pacifier railroad, south-of and as extensive as the last named railroad, Is owned In Germany. Large, If not controlling Interests in every other Important railroad in the United States, are owned by European investors. The immense Carnegie iron works at Homestead, in Pennsylvania, are owned principally In Scotland, The controlling interest In the famed Pillsbury flouring mills at Minneapolis, the largest in the world, is owned in England. The great Iron mines of the Lake .Superior region, Baid to produce 10,000,000 tons of iron ore a year, are largely held by English investors. A controlling interest in the Grant Smelters in Denver and Omaha, the largest in the world, is owned by Englishmen.

Poreigners own immense interests in the breweries of the country, largely, if not controlling. The largest bankers of New York are foreigners, or representatives of foreign banking houses. These are the great gold shippers. A large percentage of our fire and marine Insurance is in foreign insurance companies. Five-sixths of all the freightage of our foreign commerce is carried in foreign vessels. Foreigners own millions of acres of our farming lands. They own many millions of dollars in value of our city properties. Their mortgage loans overspread the face of the country. Foreigners own millions of acres of millions of United States bonds, and state bonds; and they own untold millions of city bonds, and other municipal obligations in the United States, and vast amounts of other properties not here specially stated. So great has become the aggregate of all these ownerships in the United States properties by foreigners ljving in foreign countries that the aggregate cannot be less than $7,000,000,000 or $>,000,000,000, with an average of earnings of not less than 5 per cent per annum.

It is well to be alive to the dangers ahead, and not to suppose that because a majority of the people Are In favor of the free coinage of silver that we will have a walk-over. The power of money will be exerted as it never was before, and a campaign of bribery and corruption is before us such as this country has never seen. We must be in the fight from the start. Nothing is so dangerous as feeling too sure of victory. We can be sure of nothing until it is accomplished, therefore, until the polls close on election day we should not cease to labor for the triumph of our principles. If you intend to do anything thU year for reform, now is the time to begin work. Keep the Reform flag floating.