The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1902-04-10
Takes in Majority Of the In
pOrtant J0bbing Interests
of the County,
EOUR LOCAL FIRMS ARE
REPORTED TO Be IN It
(. c. Simmons President of consolida.
tion-Intends to Continue Pres
ent Force of Statesmen Con-
nected With Houses.

= COMBINATION of the leading
hardware interest of the country
has at last been formed, bearing
out the predictions made at various times
In The Age-Herald during the past few
weeks. The authoritative announcement
of the combination is made in the issue
of the Iron Age which appears today and
is confirmed by Associated Press dis
patches from New York.
The combination Is capitalized at $780,,
900, 600. The consolidation embraces the
Simmons Hardware Company at st.
Louis Bindley Hardware of Pittsburg;
William Bingham Company of Cleveland;
Supple Hardware Company of Phila-
delphia; Pacific Hardware & Steel Co.,
of San Francisco; Marshall Wells Hard
ware Co., of Duluth; Bigelow & Dow
Company of Boston, VanCamp Hardware
& Iron Co., of Indianapolis; George Tritch
Hardware Company of Denver; Janney
Semple Hill & Co., Minneapolis and forty
other houses representing nearly every
important trade center of the country.
Negotiations are still pending with
other houses, and 1t is expected that there
will be further accessions to the number
already enrolled In the combination.
Local Firms In 1t.
While nothing is said in the dispatches
from New York about local houses being
is holt hot he hiGr
hardware jobbing concerns of Birming-
ham have been taken in. These are the
Moore & Handley Hardware Company,
the Mayberry Hardware Company, the
May & Thomas Hardware Company and
the Miner & Kettig Company.
Representatives of these four firms have
been in New York for the past week at
tending the conferences that have been
held at the Waldorf-Astoria. They are
Mr.. ]. D. Moore, Moore & Handley; Mr.
C. E. Thomas, May & Thomas; Mr.. w. Fl.
Kettig Miner & Kettig and Mr.. W. A
Chenoweth, vice president of the May
berry Hardware Company.
These gentlemen still away and all
efforts to obtain information from them
have proved unavailing. 1t is believed that
Mr.. ]. d. Moore of Moore & Handley will
be the local manager of the combine.
The Iron Age, in giving details of the
organization says:
Several Names Suggested.
Several names have been suggested
for the consolidation, such as the Inter
national Hardware & Metal Co.. and there
i- of will ba
chosen. The organization has not been
technically completed, there has been no
formal choice of officers 1t is purposed
that the officials shall be as follows:
E. C. SIMMONS, President.
JOHN BINDLEY, Yice-President.
w. D. SIMMONS, chairman of the ex-
eeutive committee.
There will be a board of directors
consisting of twenty-five or thirty per-
sons, representing the different sections
of the country. There will also be an
executive committee of nine.
1.-The financing committee is Attend
ed to by Moore &, Schley of New York
and George B. Hill & Co., of Pittsburg.
1t is intended to incorporate under the
laws of New Jersey with capital of
S1zo,UOU,OO- S40,UOUUUO preferred ana SSU,UD0,
900 common stock The preferred will
be a six per cent cumulative stock pre-
ferred both for liquidation and dividends.
The general headquarters for buying and
selling and transportation of goods will be
in st. Louis The eastern headquarters
will be In New York city. The members
of the executive committee residing in
the east with Mr. Bindley will manage
the eastern business of the corporation.
Headquarters In the East.
1.-The eastern office will have charge of
the finances and auditing and insurance
of the company, as well as the general di-
rection of all the houses in Maryland
Pennsylvania, New York and New Eng
land. The general buying for the company
will be from the st. Louis headquarters
where the larger contracts will be placed
but the smaller buying will be done by
the local houses. The principle of home
rule will be recognized In connection with
the local houses, who will make their
own selling prices, except so far as this
may interfere with the buying depart
ment or the expressed wishes of the man.
ufacturers, which 1t will be the policy of
the company to respect Each house win
be held responsible for the results of it's
business, and If these are not satisfactory
the house will be closed up
Apart from the fact that the COM
pany naturally expects to purchase goods
on the most favorable terms in view of
the large volume they will handle attain