The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-10-18
D. G. REED BEFORE
.gI( THE COMMISSION
President of American Tin Plate
Company Testifes.
BOOKS OPEN TO INSPECTION
Explains Relation of His Concern to
the National Steel Organization
Guthrie, Moore and Refs Talks
of Business Affairs
BOOKS OPEN TO INSPECTION

Washington, October 1.-THE industrial
commission continued its inquiry into the
trust question today, the witnesses being
President Daniel G. Reid, of Chicago, of
the American Tin Plate company, who
said the books of the company are open to
the inspection of stockholders.
MIR. Reid said Judge Moore organized the
combination and received for his services
$lO,0OO,OOO worth of the combination stock.
The consolidation had been made to pre-
vent absolute failure, as many of the tin
plate establishments were rapidly drifting
into bankruptcy. The prices of the product
had increased rapidly since the organization
and there had been corresponding adj
vance in wages He estimated that the in
crease in wages and in employees would rep
recent an enlarged payroll of 100000 an
nually. The average wages of their en-
ployes We're $3.50 per day. The advance In
the price of the finished products had not
been equal to that of the raw material
and of wages.
He explained the relations of his COM
pany with the National Steel company and
the American Steel Hoop company saying
that such company had directors who held
was more or less of cooperation and this
cooperation afforded a means of keeping
well informed. Mr.. Reid said that thirteen
mills had been shut down because of their
poor location, and burt twenty-five new ones
had been started.
without the tariff Mr.. Reid thought 1t
would be impossible to manufacture tin
plate in the United States. The margin is
now sufficient to permit the increase of the
price of American tin plate to $525 per box
before bringing 1t into competition with the
English product The American company
manufactures nine-tenths of the plate made
in this country and controls the prices.
William Refs, president of the National
Steel company, agreed in most respects with
Mr. Reid. The capacity of his combination
is about is per cent. of the total product of
the country. Prices of steel has increased
since last year from 1898 to $22. so per ton,
and of steel billets from 1881 to from $34 to
$l4.
Mr.. Refs differed from the other witnesses
in his estimate of the effect of the tariff,
saying that directly 1t did not benefit his
industry in the least. He said that his COM
pany did business with the tin plate COM
pany on the same basis as with other pa
irons, but admitted that the relations of
the two companies were confidential. He
declared that the steel company was not q
trust as that word was ordinarily employed.
Charles s. lGutherie, president of the
American Steel Hoop company, said he
found the combinations of the interests
represented In the company of vast advan-
tage in many ways and especially in secur-
Ing foreign market. He hoped to see the
time when the export steel trade of this
country would be ten times as great as at
present. The United States had vast adj
vantage over other countries in the plenti-
tude of it's raw materials and the inland
water haul furnished by the great lakes.
These advantages would enable this coun-
try to beat all the European countries in
the orient and in all other places where
there was fair competition. The Steel Hoop
company was composed of nine different
plants, with s14,OOO,O0O of preferred and $19,-
900 900 of common stock. He considered the
tariff of very material advantage to the in
dustry
Judge William H. Moore, of Chicago, who
had organized the American Tin Plate
company with the National Steel company
and the American Steel Hoop company and
also other combinations, explained his
methods at length.The organization of the
Tin Plate company had been undertaken
at the request of the owners of number
of tin plate establishments. He bought
each of the thirty nine concerns interested
in the combination and then gave the own
ers the privilege of accepting cash at the
valuation agreed upon or stock at the rate
of one share of common stock and one
Share of preferred for each 800 in valua-
ton, the par value of the stock being 800
per share He said that the promotion of
this and other combinations had required
a great deal of capital and he had borrowed
two or three million dollars to put the tin
plate combination throu~r defended
the New Jersey corporation law as fair and
liberal, said it was modelled largely after
the English law. He hoped to see many Of
its features adopted by other states.