Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE RAILROADS AND THE PIPE LINES "A dollar in those days (1871) looked as large as a cart wheel." John D. Rockefeller in "Random Reminiscences." CHAPTER III THE BAILBOADS AND THE PIPE LINES contract between the railroads and -- the South Improvement Company was signed, and armed with this deadly weapon, Mr. Rockefeller went round to all the rival refineries in Cleveland and explained to their respective proprietors, gently but firmly, that they were as good as dead men in the oil trade, and that the only way they could avoid utter ruin was to turn over their refineries to the South Improvement Company either for stock or cash at the latter's valuation. It seems scarcely credible, but it is an historical fact that no less than twenty out of these five-and-twenty Cleveland refiners — who, by the way, were approached one by one and under pledge of secrecy — as soon as they learnt that they were thus morally dead, proceeded at once to order their coffins. That is, they sold up as requested. The Cleveland refiners fell at Mr. Rockefeller's feet through sheerfright, and thus in less than three months' time the Standard Oil group absorbed twenty other refineries and increased its capacity from 1,500 barrels a day to 10,000 barrels—from one-tenth to one-fifth the total capacity of the United States. Of course, the murder was soon out, and the Oil Regions, which were interested in oil wells as distinct from refining, which was the Standard's business, were aflame with indignation. A Petroleum Producers' Union was formed in opposition. Mass meetings were held and Congress was petitioned. The Pennsylvania Legislature repealed the charter of the South Improvement Company, and on March 25th the peccant railroads signed a contract with the Petroleum Producers' Union, of which ...