The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-12-14
THE EFFECTS OF THE TOBACCO
MERGER.


re porter in London approached promi-
ne Mt representative of the American To-
bat GO trust, after the consolidation of the
Am erican and the Imperial companies had
been perfected, and, asked for some of the
details regarding the combination, the
prominent representative replied as fol-
lows
''Y gu can just announce that the ne
gotiat:ions have been terminated and that
Mr.. J. B. Duke will be the head of the
English company, as well as the American
company, and that he will name eight out
of twelve of the new directors of the I'm
perial company. This is all that it will
be neces sary for you to say. The Ameri-
can people will know the rest
That dis tinguished gentleman spoke a
parable. It is indeed true that the Amer
lean people knew what the rest would be.
They knew that competition on the
warehouse floors would Immediately begin
to dwindle and that it would finally
cease.
They knew that the days Of independ-
ent leaf buyers. either for home consump-
ton or export. were numbered.
mr. ,~,;ro,+ - +hoc, l,oor, +hot 1,,;t,, ooo
or two swipes half the value OF the far
mer's tobacco would be cut away.
They knew. too, that while the raw ma
terial would be reduced in value to the
producer, the manufactured product would
remain the same, or be increased.
They knew that it all meant the aban-
donment of hundreds of thousands of dol
lars worth of warehouses, prize houses,
stemmeries in Virginia, North and South
Carolina.
They will soon know that that London
consolidation meant the consolidation of
leaf tobacco markets, the discharging of
hundreds of leaf tobacco buyers and deal
ers, and after awhile they will know that
it meant great depression in tobacco grow
ing section, great reduction in the value of
these Virginia and Carolina lands upon
which grow this wonderful weed unless
something can be done to stay the evils
the consolidation set in motion. And later
on they will find that it meant the de-
struction of the best industrial interests
of many prosperous Eastern North Caro-
lima cities and a destruction of values,
both in town and country, greater even
than that which occurred in the Piedmont
section few years after the organza-
ton OF the American Tobacco Company,
and before the foreign independent COM
panies entered the field for leaf tobacco.
But some will say that the News and OBJ
server is sounding a false alarm. The
News and Observer stated after the an
nouncement of the consolidation of the
two companies in London that it meant
lower prices for the farmers tobacco.
The trust agents and sympathizers said:
"No, you are pessimistic. No such thing
can happen for the great combination
needs every leaf of tobacco that is grown
and is willing to pay fair prices for it,"
What is the result?
The same grades of tobacco today are
selling on the warehouse floors in North
Carolina for from % to 40 per cent. less
than it was the day the combination was
formed in London, and yet there has not
been one leaf of tobacco grown since that
day.
The combines buyers, it Is said, have
been practically withdrawn from a num-
Der of the markets. Many Independent
leaf buyers, in order to utilize costly prize
houses formerly built in the leading mar
kets, bought stocks of tobacco early in the
season. They hung it up in their build
ings and it is hanging there today de-
clning in value as the days go by. Mean
time every machine, every wheel iii every
trust factory at home and abroad is
rushing ahead. and old statesmen are in
old countries and new statesmen are in
new countries selling untold quantities Of
the manufactured products at unchanged
prcies.
Is there not cause for reflection? and
some action of those interested in the cul-
tivation and marketing of the grades of
tobacco grown in Virginia North Carolina
and South Carolina, the only territory in