Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-02-05

GROW UNEASY.
Resolution TO InYesti-
gate Standard Oil May Bring
Some Results.

TRENTON. Feb. 5-The reform
spirit in iBe air and The fact that 9TH
er states have taken steps to disci-
plIue the Standard Oil Company have
caused the resolution introduced in
the Senate lasr Tuesday by Senator
Miuturn. Of Hudson county, calling
for the aunulment OF the charters of
the Standard Oil Company in this
state. TO create a great deal Of uneasi-
ness among the corporation men.
Similar measures have been intro
duced in the senate and house in the
last ten years. but they were treated
as strike movements and received lit
ne serious consideration. But re-
cent developments in Ohio, Kansas
and Missouri end New York, relative
to the Standard Oil Company, and
the charge that New Jersey is largely
responsible for the existence of that
company as trust, have set the lead
ers Of The republican party to think
ing. Il would not be surprising, 1
therefore, if the Minturn resolution
stirred up a lively discussion before
the end Of the session. /
The Standard Oil Company was
first chartered in this state in Au-
gust, 1892, under the name of the
standard Oil Company of New Jersey
It's capital stock was $4,000, 600. The
fee it paid to the state for filing itsl
charter was $500. Ten years later
it increased it's capital stock to $10.-f
900, 900 and paid the state a filing.
fee of $4,000. Al this time the conf
pany changed its corporate name tot
the STANDARD Oil Company, and ash
such has done business UP to the,
present time.
January 16. 1899, the corporation!
increased its capital stock to S110,-s
coo, 900, and from that date it hasl
been viewed as q trast. The fee thatI
it paid to the state at the time of thisj
increase was $40, 900.
The state charges 3 CORPORATION taxi
on capital stock issGed of ~one-tenth of
per cent. on the first 3 1000, 000,i
One-half Of I per cent. on the nextt
5000 600, and on all " s5,090,-f
600 a rate Of $50 a million.
Up to 1900 the state received mol
income in the form of a c~orporationj
tax from the Standard Oil Company,k
which escaped state taxation under5
the law which provides that a corpo-I
ration which employs so per cent. of
its capital stock within the state isl
not subject to a corporation tax.
When the capitalization of thei
C+,nIarI Osf CaA,~~-~- ,r-ar 60 mn
0O0, and later when it was $10.000,-J
600, it asserted that it had more thant
so per cent. of it's capital invested inJ
New Jersey industries. 1t is a fact,I
however. that until its capitalization
was increased to $40, 600. 600, the
assessed valuation of its property
real and personal, never reached
more than s2,S00. 600.
In 1900 the company paid the state
$~S,494.5S; in 1901, $~S,511.S3; in
1902, $~S,50S.42; in 1903, $S,5O5.27;
in 1904, s"S,479.44, and in 1905, S.
1881.
According to the report of the state
board Of assessors last year, the as
sessed valuation of the real and per-
sonal property of the Standard Oil
Company in the state vas s5,S67,-
$50. This being more than SO per
cent. of the amount of stock issued
which was SOS, 1913, 300-it was ex-
empted from paying a corporation
tax.
Last year the assessment of the
property of the company for local
taxation was nearly doubled owe
that of previous years. This was a
result of the agitation of the equal
taxation issue.
In the twauty-three years that the
standard Oil Company has been OPP
Grating under the laws of New Jer-
sey. it has paid into the state reas-
ury S"70,S73.O5. or a little more than
$4,000 d year. These figures show
that the financial benefits received by
the state from the corporation are
not great enough to warrant any es-
pecial effort on the part of the legis-
lature 10 protect IT against reasonable
criticism or to deny an annulment of
its charter if sufficient grounds are
given for such a procedure.