agreed to charge refiners who were part of the South Improvement Company reduced rates for shipping their oil At the same time the railroads would raise the rates of all other companies shipping oil The members of the South Improvement Company would receive rebates or money back not only on their own shipments but also on the shipments of their competitors When word of the rate hikes got out Titusville's 3 000 angry oilmen swarmed the local opera house There they held nightly protests Ida later remembered the excitement of those nights as her father and the other men of the town signed a pledge not to sell to Standard Oil In what became known as the Oil War of 1872 angry mobs went so far as to destroy the tank cars of oil producers who gave in to Rockefeller Crusader of the Future The railroad rebate scheme was eventually canceled but Ida later remembered the Oil War of 1872 as the start of her hatred of privilege privilege of any sort It was the first time she realized it was every individual's duty to fight injustice She had no way of knowing this was only the start of her fight against injustice Nearly 30 years later that fight would bring her into conflict with Rockefeller again This time it would take place in one of the nation's most popular magazines
John D Rockefeller made millions of dollars in the oil business and controlled the industry with Ida as the star reporter And in the end the clash would change the course of US business and the role of journalism in American life
CHAPTER TWO KEEPING THE PEOPLE INFORMED Journalism already had a long history in the United States by the time Tarbell was born Almost from the time settlers began arriving in North America newspapers had been distributed to keep citizens informed Many of these early papers were strongly partisan openly supporting various political candidates Others were published by religious groups or other organizations interested in promoting a specific cause Most early papers cost approximately 6 to 10 per year and had to be paid for in advance This was more than the average family could afford An 1883 ad promoted the New York Sun which cost 6.50 a year for a daily subscription
