The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-05-11
PRICE ONE CENT
STEEL TRUST OPERATIONS
President Schwab Before the In
dustrial Commission.

He Discusses the Vast Interests OF
the Corporation Which Owns over
Eighty Per Cent of thc lake Supe-
rioF HInes-PracticnI Economy.
Charles Nj. schwab. President Of the
United States Steel Corporation. appeared
as a witness before the Industrial Com
mission this morning, and testified in re-
gard to the operations of that concern.
The vast interests Of the corporation were
/ discussed by The witness. he stated that
the corporation, with capitalization of
| over a billion dollars, was composed of
seven concerns The United States Steel
| Corporation owns over 50 per cent OF ali
the Lake Superior mines The shipping
/ interests Of the corporation are provided
| for by the corporation ownership of about
115 ore steamers, especially arranged for
the trade.
The ability Of the corporation to pro-
duce at lower rate than its rival was
explained by the statement that the con-
soIidation furnished opportunities for
economy in the various items Of expendi-
lures The application of skilled labor
was now so improved. said Mr. schwab.
that one man can perform the work that
formerly required the employment of ten.
One salesman was now able to perform
the work that formerly required a dozen
Economy was also accomplished in the
corporation ownership of telegraph lines,
Offices. etc. where before the each sep
arate concern required separate estab-.
Iishment-
The stock of the subsidiary companies
is controlled by the United States Steel
Corporation The parent concern issues
its own stock as collateral Each separate
company, however. maintains its own IN
dividuality and conducts its own internal
affairs The officers Of the subsidiary con-
Germs ara in sympathy with the policy of
the parent concern. and their reelection
is dependent upon that accord With the
general interests
The United States Steal Company
furnished about % per cent Of the
iron and steel productions Of the
United States. All raw materials. coal,
coke, iron ore, etc. required by the
different concerns are produced by the
corporation Mr. Schwab stated that ge-
ologists have located all the ore that ex-
lists in the earth, and that the supply is
limited The future value of iron ore, he
states, would be greatly enhanced
Wages at Carnegie, the witness stated,
were greater today than formerly. The
average of wages. outside OF the salaried
men, he testified. was 81 per day at the
present time. He has seen at the works,
individual earnings as high as 500 per
day.
In the mines controlled by the corpor-
alton. over 590looo.e0o tons of ore ere in
s:gft, according to Mr. schwab This sup
ply. he believed would last about sixty
years. The corporation owns about CO.
coo acres of ConnelsviIIe coal, which would
be exhausted in about thirty years.
Tariff laws in foreign countries interfere
largely with the interests Of the corpora
ton, especially in Russia. The tariff laws
of the United States had no effect on the
corporations interests. Many of the sub
sidiary concerns ii the corporation had no
facilities for conducting an export trade.
and this has been provided by the con-
soudation-
One of the chief difficulties to foreign
business was the deficiency in American
shipping The cost OF placing a ton Of
steel in foreign markets. Mr.. schwab ex-
planned, was greater than the cost of pro
duction. American bottoms, specially ar
ranged for the steel and iron carrying
trade, he said, are needed to meet the
necessities Of the trade The steel trade,
Mr.. Schwab considered. the most desirable
class of transport business
The removal of the tariff on iron
and steel, as proposed by the Babcock
act, Mr. schwab believed, would have no
effect on the business Of the United States
Corporation
Mr.. schwab said he did rot care to
make public certain details OF the ar
rangements between the Carnegie Com
pany and the United States Steel Cor
poration, by which the latter took over
the plants of the former.
He stated that the arrangements were
personal matters that would not enlight-
en- the Commission He, however, stated
that in the transaction the Carnegie Com
pany was not paid in bonds only.