The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-05-19
UNITED STATES RUBBER co.
Large Increase of Business the Pas

-fth 4Ol @hAc1J At-L AAC 1AAAAAdl lllccl- ing of the United States Rubber conpa- ny was held in New Brunswick, N. J., to-day. Anthony N. Brady, of this city. was elected director to fill vacancy, and the other directors were reelected as follows: Walter s. Ballou, Provi- dence. R. l.; E. c. Beledict. Greenwich; Samuel P Colt, Providence. R. l.; E. s. Converse, H. E. Conyerse, Costello C.. Converse, Boston. Mass; James B. Ford. J. Howard Ford Francis L. Hine. New York city; Henry L. Hotchkss, New Haven, Conn: Lbster Leland, Bos- ton, Mass. Frederick Nj. Shepard, East Orange, N. J.; John D. Vermeule, New York city.
 Organization of the board for the year will be completed in this city on Friday.
 The annual report of President Samu- el P. Colt was very gratifying one to the shareholders. It showed that the volume of business for the year was the largest in the company's history, not withstanding the advance in prices of supplies, and the adoption of the non- restrictive system of selling goods. The gross sales for the year were $64, 553, ,237, an increase of $12,664,4SO The net pro- fits for the year were s2,SSO. POT, as com pared with $2,774,SsS for the previous year.
 The abandonment of the system of attempting to regulate prices after the title of the goods had passed from the company had worked very successfully A profit sharing project by which a block of the common and preferred stock is to be distributed among about one hundred and fifty of the principal employees has been adopted. The com pany has established it's own purchas- ling agencies in the rubber fields and the manufacture of by-products is an i'm portant part of the operations.
 The company's indebtedness of $12, 000000 has been funded into three year five per cent, collateral trust notes. l The full text of President Colts re- port follows:
 To the Stockholders of the United
 States Rubber Company:
 This is the third annual report of the president of your company. and at the outset cannot refrain from saying that 1t is the first report which 1t has given me pleasure to make and submit for { your consideration.
 Upon assuming the presidency of your company three years ago, the existing tconditions were far from satisfactory Owing to the abnormally high prices for our manufactured products which had prevailed for some years, many new rubber companies had come into exis- tence. The result was an intense com petition, in which the output of this company declined to a net of $20.- S00,000. By January and February 1901, this competition had resulted in re- i duetion in prices averaging about 2S per cent and in the sale by all concerned of goods at or near the actual cost of production. Under these conditions, as always, the evil supplied it's own reme- dy, and only the stronger companies found themselves able to survive the strain of such competition. At the present time not only have we regained our full share of the trade, but we have actually doubled the gross sales of our product without any advance in prices except to compensate for the advance in the cost of raw material--the larger product enabling us to run our mills to their full capacity, which decreases ma terially the cost of production. The gross sales of the company for the year ending March 31, 1901, were S32 000, ,000, whereas the gross sales for the present year were $64.000,O00. The gross is measured by the list prices which are nearer uniform than the net prices. l In my annual report for 1902 reference was made to the fact that the present management was called upon to adjust a large indebtedness to the company. In the settlement of this claim in the spring of that year, the company was obliged to take over certain interests in other corporations. In consequence the present officers and directors of your company have been obliged to manage not only the business of this company but also these various outside interests In a previous report, l stated it to be my opinion that serious loss has been avoided and l can now say that through reorganization, realization and Eadjustment I feel that statement has
 been practically made good, although as a matter of precaution Gas will be seen by the treasurers report) $500, ,000 out of the past years earnings has been reserved for depreciation upon these se- curities.
 Three years ago. after readjusting the affairs of the company to meet the low CT range of prices for goods, and giving rebates to jobbers for the goods they had on hand, in compliance with a GUS tom which then prevailed, the balance sheet showed deficit. In the state ment of two years ago, this deficit had been changed to a surplus of $42,O11 75
 In the statement of year ago, this surplus had increased to $1, ,3S4, 460. .07 By this years statement, after carrying
 to reserve for depreciation of securities as before stated $50O,0OO, and providing
 for dividend of 1 1-2 per cent. on the preferred stock, payable June 15, 1904 requiring $352, ,SS2.50 there will remain 6 surplus of $2,1O7, ,21S.S6.
 VOLUME OF BUSINESS.
 The volume of business done by the lcompany during the past year is the largest in it's history. Three years age the annual net sales of boots, shoes anC
 miscellaneous goods were $20, S53, ,69S. .94 This year the net sales amount to sSS,- 396, ,91S.3S. This shows an increase oi $12, ,543, ,28494 net, of which $5,120, 2SS30 is
 the increase of last year over the pre-