The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-06-09
"A RACY STORY
WAS TOLD.
Before the Industrial C Commission
by aFormcr Standard Oil
Company Employc.
EIGHT DIFFERENT GRADES.
OF Oil Were Sold out OF Only
Two Tanks-.-Practices OF the
Monopoly Shown up.

WASHINGTON. June S.-The Indus
trial Commission to-day resumed It's
investigation Of trusts, the Standard
OIL Company receiving especial atten-
tlon. Mr.. w. II. Clark, of Ohio, who,
until last February was employed by
the Standard OIL Company in various
towns In that state, but was then sus-
pended. testified that while employed
ut MARIETTA, the Standard had ousted
other companies from the business by
competition and then put up the price
OF oil. He said that eight nominal
grades Of oil were sold out OF only two
tanks, the faucet being turned In differ
ent directions for different grades.
This was done, he said. under instruc-
| tions from the managers for the Stand
ard Company. Messrs. Matthews and
Hollingsworth. Mr.. Clark also said
that the company bought and sold tur-
pentine but before selling 1t would put
six OF seven gallons of gasoline in each
barrel of turpentine.
At Columbus. Mr.. Clark was the cash.
Ter Of the Standard Company. At that
point. he said, much oil was adulter-
ated. For instance. miners oil was
made by mixing In q little cottonseed
oil. Here the STANDARD company start
ed what was called the Shoemaker OIL
Company. This was purely Standard
establishment, he testified, Its men be-
ing paid by the Standard company, but
It was made TO appear to be nn inde-
pendent concern. and was used as q
blind.
AT Springfield, Mr.. Clark said he was
wagon salesman and the instructions
there were to get trade regardless OF
the price. Some refined oil was sold as
low as four cents and here also us many
as four nominal grades of oil were
taken from one tank. Rebates were
| made when necessary. When he had
spoken to the management OF the dis
honesty OF these practices he had been
told that 1t was not for him to say
about such matters. but to do what he
was told.
At Urbana he said he was manager
for the Standard company. Here a
competitor was driven out by threat
to force the price down to one cent q
gallon. The competitor afterward went
to the poor house. Witness for n time
was manager at Newark. Here the
work was very hard because of the
great range Of prices There were
twenty-five different figures used there.
One man would get oil Tor seven cents
while his next door neighbor would pay
nine and one-half cents. Rebates also
were given to especially favored pat
rons. These were made under the In
structions of Mr.. B. A. Matthews, as
We're all changes in price or terms.
The witness testified that at Newark
the company bought building from
over a leaser's head who was doing q
competitive business, and Mr.. Clark.
with other men, went into the building
in the absence of the competitor load
ed the building on carts and carried It
away. For this he (Mr. Clark) was
compllmentcd and was to have been re-
warded with n two weeks vacation,
while the competitor was so frightened
that he went out of the business. This
was not accomplished. however, until
nil his customers had been located by a
boy employed to follow his wagon on a
bicycle. At Newark n customer want
ed oil from Cleveland. He was satisfied
by supplying him out Of barrel paint
ed red and marked as II from Cleve-
land. He received the same. oil, how
ever. that other people got.
The witness said that laborers for the
Standard company were generally paid
sevcrty-fve cents day and that they
worked on nm average of twelve hours
day.
There was. he said. often q difference
! OF two cents n gallon In the prices of oil
between places where there was COM
petition and placeg where there was
none.