The morning call., 1892-02-01
AMERICAN TOBACCO co.
Good Showing Made at the Corporations
Annual Meeting.

NEW YORK, Jan. 31.-The annual meet
Ing Of the American Tobacco Company mas
just been held at the cOmpany's office IN
Newark. y. j.. under the laws Of which
State the company is organized. The old
officers were reelected with the exception
of some few changes aud additions The
success Of the company during the last
year, the second of its existence, has been
most satisfactory. In addition to the cigar
cite and tobacco manufacturing concerns
which originally formed the company the
factories of Marburg Bros, of Gail, AK u
Co., the National Tobacco Company OF
Louisville and the Whitelock Company OF
Richmond. all Of whom manufacture either
smoking tobacco. snuff, plug tobacco or
cheroots, have sold their business TO the
company
INDUSTRIAL CORPORATION.
Now that the theory and methods of the
American Company are being better known
to dealers and purchasers, that old ana un-
founded objection to tobacco trust, as II
was sometimes enormously styled by the
ignorant has died out. 1t is now thor
oughly well understood that this is an in
dustrial corporation, pure and simple.
carrying on a vast business IN most
intelligent liberal and progressive man
ner. BY cutting off unnecessary expense
supplies in immense quantities at the low
est prices ii is, therefore, enabled not 10
raise prices, which is really the first object
OF a genuine trust; but furthermore no
trust tactics have been pursued IN the con-
duct of its business. The Wall-Street mar
ket, which has not been used to boom tho
price Of tile stock, creates an immense spec
ulatiOn and then as suddenly drops II
again in order that the insiders may reap
Immense benefits. This system has been
pursued by well-known trusts and IN direct
opposition to the conduct and policy OF tne
affairs as carried on in the business OF the
American Tobacco Company.
INTERESTS INVOLVED.
The tendency Of this age is toward con-
SolidatlOn and Capitalization, and the to-
bacco and cigar manufacturers have slightly
followed the drift If public policy. To use
a familiar smile, trust is despotism,
Ike Russia, While the American Tobacco
Company is a gigantic industrial corpora
ton, with nearly a thousand stockholders,
employing thousands of operatives, who IN
their turn support more thousands depend
ing on them, and is In reality republic,
like the United States. Some paI ers were
presented at this meeting which show the
large interests involved and give some slight
idea OF the employment this company gives
to large number Of people, who are paid
high wages, Willie at the same time the
stockholders, who provide the capital with
" hich the business IS carried on, receive
fair ana reasonable dividend,
PROFITABLE INVESTMENTS.
1t is undoubtedly true that great many
people who have become dissatisfied with
railroad securities, Western mortgages and
other forms IF investment which are Liable
to sudden market changes or absolute de-
probation, are following the lead that was
set many years ago in England, by invest
ing in the stocks and bonds Of the large
industrial corporations. for two reasons:
First, they obtain a security virtually
equivalent TO the best railroad stocks at q
slightly higher rate Of interest, and where
these companies have been formed and are
conducted on strict business principles,
they have a better investment Another
reason is in reality the fact that these large
industrial corporations are in many ease.
virtually cooperative; that is to say, as in
the case of this company, much of the
stock is held by the employees and its Gus
toners, who thus become corporate partners
in the business and not only seek to ex-
tend the. business. but at the same time reap
the benefit of such trade as they do for the
concern, and are thus enlisted as so many
unpaid agents. These corporations are
destined within the next few years uu-
doubtedly 10 become not only more popular,
but general throughout the United States,
in the same way they are in Europe to-
day, where most Of the large public works
and great commercial undertakings are con-
Quoted by industrial CORPORATIONS.