Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-12-02
TIN PLATES AGAIN.
Some More Facts Bearing on This
Particular Trust.

~ sAtAA0& = 1917
HENRY w. LAMB, OF THE NEW
ENGLAND TRADE LEAGUE,
WRITES A VERY INTERESTING
LETTER OF LOCAL VALUE AND
SIGNIFICANCE
Mr.. Henry w. Lamb, president OF
the New England Free Trade League,
writes as follows:
s'Mr. Byron w. Hollis letter of Oc-
tober IS, published in the Register),
describing the Tinplate Trust, has been
widely published in the press and has
aroused comment all over the country.
1t has not been refuted, however, and
the course of events since its publica-
tion not only supports its assertions
but emphasizes them.
THE trust has maintained the high
price of tinplates, although materials
have declined, more mills have been
closed and more men thrown out of en-
ployment, while the testimony given
before the Industrial Commission
(much Of it by officers of the trusO
has fully borne out the charges of
monopoly, over-capitalization and ex-
tortion made possible by the protective
duty of $3.50 per box Of 100 pounds.
mr. Hollis letter upset the pretense
that the cost of raw materials caused
the trusts advances in price by show
ing the advances in tinplates preceded
the advances In steel and pig tin. He
also showed that the advances in steel
and pig tin were insufficient to justify
the trust prices, and that the latter
were arbitrarily set at the highest
point to which the trust could Judle-
iously go under the protective duty on
imported tinplates.
eff it were true, as asserted by the
supporters of the trust, that its prices
were regulated by the cost of materials,
then why does the price remain at
$465, instead of dropping per cent?
"Mr. Hollis letter gave prices of De-
tober 6. Since then steel has dropped
81 a ton, or 10 cents on the steel in
100-pound box of tinplates, the cost
being $50 per ton on November 81, as
against $3S on October 6. On October
6 pig tin was 1925 per 100 pounds,
while November q it was $27.60 per
100 pounds, making a drop OF 119s
cents on the tin in thinly coated box
of tinplates. November II, then, ma
terials have fallen nearly 22 cents a
box, but the price on tinplates remains
the same as on October 6-$4. 65-or
about a dollar more than tinplates sell
for in the English market.
"It is not probable that the trust
made tinplates, however, out of steel
that cost as high as the above figures.
1t worked in admitted confidential re-
lations with steel combinations, and 1t
is we'll known that the nominal price
of steel this summer and fall has APP
piled only to new purchases, not to old
contracts. The Iron Age recently
said:
Gas a matter of fact, the figures at
which new contracts for 1900 delivery
are being entered into, say $36, Pitts
burg, is heavy advance on the figure
at which the old contracts now expir-
ing were taken
"But Mr.. William T. Graham, vice.
president of the American Tinplate
Company, did not breathe a word OF
this in his testimony before the Indus
trial Commission at Washington, and
declared that the profits were not so
large as formerly However, the Off
GERS of the American Tinplate Com
pany in their testimony conficted with
each other in a most amusing way. To
balance MI. Graham's statement about
former profits Mr. D. G. Reid, president
of the company, testified that the con-
solidation had been made to prevent
absolute failure, as many of the tin
plate establishments were rapidly drift
ing into bankruptcy Against that,
however, Mr.. F. S. Wheeler, the treas
urer of the company, anxious to ex-
plain its capitalization, testified that
the common stock of the company rep
resented the price of the goodwill of
the different companies which consti-
tute the combination
Now, what was the commercial val
ue of the goodwill of about 40 estab-
Iishments, many of which were rapidly
drifting into bankruptcy Was it
$50, 900, 900, or even $40 ,000, 600? Was
it anything? So far as any other than
LuC luJuiO NdluC vas COA-
cerned there was none, for the tinplate
manufacturers had not earned any
goodwill.
"Since October 10 the trust has great
ly increased the said list, which Mr..
Holt then gave as plants, comprising
"a mills, shut down to adjust the sup
ply to the restricted demand at the ar
tificially high prices. Under date of
November the following statement
was sent to the American Metal Mar
ket from Pittsburg:
"'The American Tinplate Company
to-day served notice of discharge on
the superintendent and clerks Of all
Its mills in Ptttsburg. The discharges
will take effect November Is. Some of
the plants have been closed, temper
arily, it is said. for some time, but
the latest move shows the shutdown to
be permanent
ga mother item from WASHINGTON