Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-09
CIGARS WILL GO UP,
If a Trust Scheme That Is Now in
Formation Goes Through.
CAPITAL OF s25,OOO,OOO WANTED.
The Combination Not So Readily Made as
Was the Cigarette Trust.
A TALK WITH THE CHIEF ORGANIZER

NEW YORK, Oct. 8.-RepresentatiVes of
the large cigar-making firms in this and
neighboring cities met at the Office of Theo-
dore H. Allen, No 1S Broadway, yesterday,
to form trust. 1t will probably be capi-
talized at 100000. The meeting was
held with closed doors, and each person who
attended, when approached by a reporter,
refused to either disclose what took place
inside or to give any names. Enough was
learned from other sources, however, to say
that the combination will put up the price
of cigars, and at the same time will reduce
the profits of retailers
Each firm in the combine Fexpresesd the
conviction that this was the only way to
freeze out the multitude of small manufact-
urers, who now get good share of the
trade, and whose aggressive competition
keeps fair grade of cigars within reach of
the smoking public. The trust will include
the manufacturers of the domestic article
only. The makers of Havana goods were
not invited to the conference. The propo-
sition to form Cigar Trust was first made
after the passage of the Mckinley bill,
which so increased the tariff on Sumatra
wrappers as to cut off large amount of
profit from domestic manufactured goods.
THE TRUSTS ORGANIZER.
Meetings of manufacturers were held in
various parts of the country, and PROPOSE
tion was made to raise prices. After care
ful consideration it was not thought ex-
pedient to force the increase upon them.
Many manufacturers continued to furnish
goods at the old prices. General demor-
alization followed. Then Theodore H.
Allen, the organizer of the Cigarette Trust,
said: Gentlemen, your only hope is to
consolidate"
A meeting of the leading manufacturers
of domestic cigars of the Third metropolitan
district was held and it has been followed
by weekly meetings in Mr.. Aliens Office.
Since the first meeting committee of five
has been appointed to appraise the stock on
hand and to report the business each firm is
doing. To each member of the organization
will be issued trust certificates or bonds of
the corporation to the amount of the ap-
praised value of his business, besides which
he will receive stock in the corporation for
a like amount. An enormous operating
capital is thus secured, which it is believed
will amount to S25, 100000.
According to the report of one manufact-
urer who is in the scheme, each factory is to
owners, who will turn in their profits to
the central organization, to be divided pro
rata according to the amount of stock and
bonds held by each individual member.
ONLY WANT FAIR PRICES.
Theodore 81. Allen, father of the scheme,
told reporter yesterday that the primary
object of the consolidation was to obtain fair
prices for goods, He said the present high
price of tobacco, coupled with the nerce
competition in trade, had been ruinous and
had IN he a coli Ioto hu
iobbers was another evil which would be
done away with, while the trust would only
exert its power in legitimate directions and
not wantonly oppress or injure any one. 1t
was purely matter of self-defense on the
part of the manufacturers.
In forming the cigarette combine, he said,
only six manufacturers had to be brought
together, while in the cigar trade there are
no less than $4,000 shops in the United
States which can be classed as factories, be-
sides the multitude of little stores employ
must either be brought into the combine or
frozen out before its object-absolute con-
trol-could be called an accomplished fact.
When asked what effect the trust would
have upon the question oflabor, and whether
it was not being formed to crush out the
labor unions Mr.. Allen said:
81 am not here to be interviewed upon
that subject"
LABOR UNIONS ALARMED.
A member of the Cigar Makers Union
said the first thing the trust would attempt
after it got in good running order would be
to crush the life out of the labor unions.
Another great object of the consolidation
will be the purchase of leaf tobacco in large
quantities. To do this they will send their
own agents to Amsterdam to buy the Suma-
ira leaf direct from the planters, while they
will likewise send their agents through the
wrapping-leaf districts in Connecticut,
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and this State
and buy the growing crops. They will
totally ignore the leaf merchants and mid
dlemen and practically drive them out of
the business.
Mr. George Storm, of Straiton & Storm,
said: SIT is a great undertaking and will
probably not amount to much. To make it
perfect success a large majority of the
$4,000 cigar manufacturers in the United
States must be brought in touch with it.
doubt whether it is possible to do that, yet
am awaiting developments, and do not pro-
pose to be precipltate in my action in the
matter
The scheme is so far advanced that its
projectors expect it to be on a business
footing by January 1. Among the promin-
ent manufacturers who are said to be inter-
ested in the combination are Morris Jacoby
& Co., Herman Jacoby, S. Jacoby & Co.,
Lichtenstein Bros. & Co., s. Gutenberg &
Bros, Heyman Bros s. Loewenstein, Fos-
ter, Hilson & Co. and about 20 others in
this city; Powell & Smith, of Kingston and
New York; all the Binghamton factories,
and many of the larger manufactures in
Western cities. When the trust gets in
operation IL will directly control loo, 900
workmen and the output of between 4, 4,0O0,-
100000 and 5,OOO,0O0,O0O cigars in this
country.
THE YORKTOWN SAILS AWAY.