The news-democrat. (Providence, R.I.) 1906-1909, 1906-06-19

The firm of John ID. Lewis Co. of
this city is again brought into prom
inence In the tobacco trust investi-
cation by the indictment, In New
York. OF the two companies that are
alleged 10 have entered into an agree
ment with the Providence firm TO
advance and maintain prices OF licorice
paste TO all consumers not In the 10
bacco trust.
1t is alleged, also. that an agree
ment was made whereby all independ-
ent consumers were to be supplied. at
these prices, by the local concern and
by the John s. Young company OF Bal
timore, while the trust was 10 be sup
piled by the MacAndrews & Forbes
company OF New York.
The two latter-named concerns are
the ones that have been indicted as
have their presidents. Karl Jungbluth
and Howard r. Young.
Ii is set forth in the indictments that
the MacAndrews q Forbes company
and the John s. Young company con-
trolled s5 per cent. of the licorice paste
manufactured I'm this country The
paste is used extensively In the manu-
facture OF plug and smoking tobacco.
snuff and cigars
Contracts and letters are quoted in
the indictments TO show that the Mac =
Andrews G. Forbes company and the
John S. Young company entered into
an agreement with John ID. Lewis, OF
Providence, and the Weaver a. Sterry
company OF New York to advance
prices Of licorice paste 10 consumers
not in the trust.
In the arrangement Lewis was to
limit his sales OF paste TO 1000, 900
pounds In 1904, increasing the amount
sold by $4,000 pounds each year for
years
II was part of the plan that the TO
bacco trust was TO get nine-tenths OF
all the licorice- paste sold, while its
independent rivals should get only one
tenth.
BY the terms OF a contract the ]. S.
Young company was 10 receive the an
nual profit on 10000 cases OF paste.
whether the paste was sold to the
Independent consumers or not
On Aug. 25. 1904 Henry NJ. Rau.
agent for the John s. Young company,
wrote TO John ID Lewis as follows:
AT a conference held today II was
decided as the best policy TO attempt
TO obtain contracts for John D. Lewis
and the ]. s. Young company from
all the Independent tobacco manufac-
turers, barring, of course, those who
are still under old contracts either
with one of us or with the MacAndrews
& Forbes company.
ITO this purpose NJ & r. will here
after confine the sale OF their product
TO factories affiliated with the Ameri-
can and Continental Tobacco com
panies, which factories will doubtless
require the entire product OF the NJ
a. +. Co.
This was the ultimate purpose In
view when the present arrangements
were contemplated. and the action
which M. & F. will take in case OF any
| orders from the parties referred TO
will be effective"
In the same letter Mr.. Lewis was
told TO go ahead and make contracts
for the sale OF his paste at 915 cents
a pound to large consumers and l0i2
cents pound to small consumers.
Previous to the combination. as the
letters show, the paste had been sell
ing at cents a pound. Rau had the
following TO say about the higher
prices TO small consumers:
These prices TO very small consum-
ers are to be effective at once. and
you should notify your agent or
agents at once and state at the same
time that in a few days you will have
contracts to offer the more important
consumers at a somewhat lower price
than 10h.