The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-08-18
A NEW TRUST FORMED.
Ii will Fight the American Tobacco
COmpanY.

Company.
Editor Western Tobacco Journal.
ST. LOUIS, Mo-, Aug. 14.-"Yes sir,
we contemplate manufacturing cigar
cites in the near future. Going into
the business to stay. We have known
for some years past that it Is a growing
and profitable business, and have been
for some time quietly investigating the
subject and formulating our plans, and
we now have the necessary machinery
and raw material of all kinds contracted
for, and some in transit, and we are
fitting up one of our buildings to be
used as cigarette factory. Statistics
show that the business has grown from
about seventy million cigarettes manu-
featured in 1868 to over three hundred
thousand millions manufactured in
1894. The greater part of these ciga-
rettes have been made in the
East. We have made up our minds that
the West, and particularly st. Louis, is
entitled to share of this enormous bus
mess, and we intend to have it. Our
machinery will be of the latest and most
improved kind and we will employ the best
skilled Workmen in that line of business
that can be procured. This branch of
the tobacco industry will give employ
ment in st. Louis to a large amount of
capital, and to hundreds and perhaps
thousands of people. We believe that
dealers in the West, and perhaps also in
the East, will hail with delight the de
termination of others to enter into COM
petition with Eastern factories for a
share of the trade in cigarettes. We
have been reliably informed that other
prominent plug tobacco manufacturers
are making preparations to engage also
in the manufacture of cigarettes, and we
see no reason why all should not be sue
cessful in this branch of the tobacco bus
mess"
Yours truly,
LIGGETT d MYERS TOBACCO Co.
The above was received here this morn
ing by Mr.. Albert Kramer, one of our
leading leaf dealers, accompanied by a
letter from Mr.. Thomas Mason, proprie-
ter of the Western Tobacco Journal, who
stated that the other plug manufacturers
referred to were the Drummond Tobacco
Company, of st. Louis, and that the let
ter above would appear in his paper to
be issued on Monday the 10Th instant.
The New York World of yesterday said
that the Liggett Il Myers and Drummond
people were in New York in conference
with the National Cigarette Company of
that city for the purpose of forming a
big combine with the avowed purpose of
fighting the American Tobacco Company.
If that is true lively fight may be ex-
pected for the last named company now
has the field and has brains and money
enough to be able to take care of them
selves and will be likely to do so.
None of the officers of the Duke
Branch of the American Tobacco Com
pany are in town so am unable to learn
in what light they regard the new move
ment 1t is not, however, improbable
that it will result in a combination even
greater than that that now exists, viz,
one embracing both the American To
bacco Company and ita Would'be COM
petitors.
If such result should be reached it
would be absolutely in command of the
whole field and would control the to-
bacco manufacturing interest of the
country as absolutely as the Stradard
Oil cause does its lines