Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1899-11-23
BETTER THAN A GOLD MINE.
Profits OF the Tin Plate Cimbine are
Enormous - Competition Stided
Eighty Mills Closed.

Eighty Mills Closed.
Washington, Nov. 17.-William Ii.
Griffith, Il tin plate maker of Washing
ton, Pa, was before the industrial
commission Thursday. He told the
commission that his company. which
has since disposed of its plant, cleared
20 per cent profit last year when the
price of tin was $3.50 per box, the
lowest ever known for plate. He also
said that just previous to the passage
OF the Mckinley bill and for year or
so afterwards when the price was $2.6j,
the profit was fully l00 per cent. He
said that while his company had sold
ITS plant to the trust the transaction
had been without his sanction and that
he had since undertaken the establish
ment of an Independent plant, also To-
Gated at Washington, Pa, which he
soon would have in operation. The
sale of the old plant had been made
under the representation that the con-
solidatiOn was necessary to prevent
competition, and there had been a fear
that if they did not 90 into the pool
their business would be injured.
In re-establishing himself he had
found that he was hampered in seclIr-
having control of the makers of tin
plate machinery. as we'll as of the man
ufacture of plate itself. lie said that
a manufacturing company which had
entered INTO an agreement with him
TO supply him for five wears. had al
ready refused to fill an order after an
Official of the trust had become a large
owner of the stock of that company.
'INn f..AEst st1.I.. ,g.Y,-
independent manufacturers of sheet
IRON, the American company refusing
to sell to them except upon the stip-
ulation that they should not sell their
product to makers of tin plate. Fur
thermorc the continuation refused to
supply jobbers and others with their
especial brands except upon condition
that they assign their brands to the
trust. There was a similar restriction
upon block plate and half the dip
pers' in the country had been forced
ont of business
He thought the managers of some of
the different plants in the trust were
growing restless under these restric-
tons, as they were not running nearly
rs steadily as before the combination
was effected. Of the PIP mills in the
Mr.. Griffith said that since the trust
had been organized prices of tin plate
had advanced from $3.50 to S465 per
hundred. This advance was out of
proportion to the advance in wages
and raw material. He made a caIcuIa-
tion to show that So. would be n
profitable price under present condi-
tiOns. However, he said that notwith-
standing this advance in prices he had
reason to believe some of the members
of the combination were woefully dis
appointed in the results. He also un-
dcrStOOd that the employees in the trust
mills were becoming apprehensive,
which he thought was illustrated by
the fact that of the 500 rollers em-
plOyed by the combination $50 had
made application to him for places in
his establishment.
Mr.. Griffin said that while the Amer
lean company was capitalized for $50
100000 tn" plants comprising the COM
biration could have been bought at the
time the combination was effected for
Sl20OO,OGO. He therefore considered
the company ovcrcapitalized. He had
understood that the promoters of the
combination haS received $4,000. 900 in
common stool, for t,Si: services. The
standard price paid fer mills in form
in" the trust was $4,000 each His
own company had received an advance
of % per cent upon cash valuation.
The witness said he considered the
tariff essential to the protection of tn.
tin plate industry in this country. but
he would not say that so high a tariff
as the present was necessary.