Andrew Carnegie Monopoly

Industry in the late 1800's was dominated by trusts, under a trust a company will hold the stock of several companies and make decisions for all companies involved. When a trust gained controlling interest in all of the companies from a specific industry, the trust became a monopoly, occurring when a company had total control over the production of a specific service or product. Most business leaders supported a form of capitalism known as laissez-faire, describing an economic system in which the government does not interfere with business. The practice of this greatly benefited the the leaders in industry but did not protect the workers leading to many critics to believing that the success of the industry was built upon the sacrifices of workers.

Carnegie believed that the wealthy were obligated to take care of the poor. He called this responsibility the "Gospel of Wealth." He further asserted that "the man who dies rich, dies disgraced." Carnegie used his wealth to fund schools, public libraries, and numerous charitable organizations. However not all were as kindhearted and Carnegie was. Workers were forced to work long hours in dangerous factories for little pay, and child labor was used in many factories. There were unsafe working conditions for all types of workers. Many were killed and injured in steel mills and oil refineries. Companies did not make up for the worker’s or a family’s loss when these events occurred. Workers often lived in "company towns" where rents and utilities were controlled by factory-mill owners. Sometimes employers only paid workers in coupons, instead of money. These coupons were good at local stores only, which were sometimes owned by the factory owner. Workers often used their whole paychecks to buy basic necessities, even though the same things could be bought more cheaply at other stores. Workers banded together in organizations called unions in order to fight for their rights. The Knights of Labor and the American Federation of Labor was founded in order to obtain those rights. Many riots and strikes occurred due to the injustice taking place withing the working field,

Rockefeller and five business partners created Standard Oil Company of Ohio. When expansion beyond the state of Ohio was limited due to state laws, Rockefeller enacted the first trust in 1882 in order to bypass the law. In Ida Tarbell Criticizes Standard Oil, Tarbell voices her opinion in the fairness in business, “Business played in this way loses all its sportsman like qualities. It is fit only for tricksters.” Rockefeller is not the only successful business man that weaseled their way out from the law, although he was the most popular. Now with all of this information fresh in the mind a question is offered: Should the government break up Standard Oil's monopoly? Henry H. Klein writes, “The industrial fortunes created during the past fifty years have drained the resources of the nation and the people. The ring of monopoly and extortion is complete, and water rights, forest lands, mines, public utilities, railroads and all necessary or useful commodities are owned and controlled by those who levy tribute on the people.” Considering all of this information and the situation that is given we must come to the consensus that this monopoly is an act like that of a criminal, and needs to be