The Minneapolis journal., 1903-03-02
The Great American Invader.


running in the Century on ''The Great
Business Combinations Of To-day are
doubtless reminding thousands OF read
ers that though they have talked much
about trusts they know little about them
except that they are colossal commercial
and industrial organizations with tre
mendous power. whether for good or for
evil. The Century series shows that we
do not even thoroughly appreciate the
magnitude of some Of the trusts. The
public is pretty well acquainted with the
proportions of the United States Steel
company and it is adequately impressed
with the colossal size and imperial pow
ers of the Standard OIL company. Re
Gently. especially In certain cities, it has
heard much about the tobacco trust, but
very little does it know about that gigan-
tic organization which has carried its
standard oversea and planted it firmly
there. the first great American corpora
ton to rule it's chosen trade throughout
the world. the first to demonstrate to the
utmost that pregnant foreign coined
phrase the American invasion.'"
From some previous magazine articles
and the newspaper reports on the war
between the American and British to-
bacco trusts and the settlement thereof,
it has appeared that the American in
vaders were foiled in their attacks OH
the British trade and were glad to agree
to a. treaty Of peace and union in order
to prevent an attack in the rear by the
British company But it appears from
George Buchanan Fife's account of the
tobacco trust, in the Century, that the
settlement merely saved the British Or
ganization from total ruin and was the
result Of a complete surrender by it the
moment it saw that the Americans had
won the battle. The surrender has given
the world it's first great international
trust, under the name of the British.
American Tobacco company. The British
American company is nothing more thar
the former foreign department of the
Imperial, the British trust, with a new
g name and two-thirds of its stock and two
thirds of its directory controlled by
Americans, the foreign trade of tht
American trust being united with it.
The straight American trust kindly per.
mits this two thirds American compan,
to have exclusive control of the tobacco
trade Of all countries foreign to the United
Kingdom and the United States, and al
the British colonies. The Consolidated
Tobacco company, the American trust
pure and simple, remains in control o
all American, Philippine, Cuban Port
Rican and Hawaiian business. The I'm
perial company, with one-seventh OF it
stock in American hands, is left alone t.
control the business of Great Britain an,
Ireland. The result of the great interna
tiona1 trust. then. has been substantially
to shut the British company proper up: i
It's own islands. leaving the rest of tn
world to the Americans. There are som
countries where the tobacco trade is
monopoly Of government, but outside G
these the American tobacco trust In on
form or another controls the major pal
of the worlds tobacco trade. It own
131 factories in nine countries, its actus
assets are worth s15o.ooo0oo and 1t
capitalized at s40n, 900, 0o0
The tremendous powers Of such an OF
ganization are demonstrated by the feal
full blows it struck at. the Imperial com
:. pany. blows that brought the latter to /,
knees and in no manner weakened til
former. It offered to divide it's entir
profits in Great Britain and Ireland #
& the next four, years among the retailer
buying directly from it, and, In addition
promised to distribute s1,o00,00O a yee
among the same retailers. TO make goo
its promises the American company ha
q. surplus of s5,oOo.00O on which to dra
and the immense annual profits of i
American business. It could had
wished have continued indefinitely to I
business in the United Kingdom for notl
ing. 1t was d side, issue with the Amer