The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-07-28
terred stock. and s,soooooo common

common. making S7bo0.0o0; Kinney
sobacco Company received s2,0oo,OUo
preferred and s3,ooo.ooo common, max.
y Ing s5.0o0,eoo; W. S. Kimball & Co,
s 100000 preferred and s1,50oooo COM
mon, making a total OF sa,5oo,o0o. aud
4 Gcadwin & Co. received si,u0o,ede pre-
forred and 81. 100000 common, making
total OF $1,000, 600.
The new American Tobacco Com
psny secured. through Mr.. 49, Duke,
the exclusive Use az tho Bonsac,,
cigarette machine. the only perfected
cigarette machine At That time oh the
market, except the Eliot machine.
which, however, could not lie used on
account OF the owners being restrained
BY court proceedings. Later, however.
{ the Eliot machine was released, and
Tho independent manufacturers. who
were producing only fifteen per cent,
z n the Beieareftb nt+tsrt ,spfr enabled
10 comrete wtthGtli infant trust
Duke at The Head.
At the very beginning Mr. j. y.
Duke took command Of the situation
ard. after year as Vice. president,
succeeded Major Gintcr as president OF
the American Tobacco Company and
head OF the trust, a position he has
held ever since. The independent
dealers were able to go on the market
and purchase raw materinl at as low a
price as the trust. they We're able to
secure as satisfactory and us low ship.
ping rates as their adversares and
therefore. it remained for the trust to
B)an some means of driving them out
Of the trade. The battle was not
long one. for BY competition that could
not be met, the independent factories
were forced to surrender, the National
Cigarette and Tobacco Company be-
ing the last to capitulate. This COM
pany waged a. furious fight by means
of putting upon tbs market brand
nf cigarettes known as Admiral
which 1t sold twenty for five cents In
competition with the trust brand
Sweet Caporal," which retaled ten
for five cents. TO meet this move tho
trust sold their cigarettes to all lob
bers at less than cost price, and, with
the immense capital behind It, soon
forced the independent TO withdraw
from the field. Within six years the
American Tobacco Company was prac-
tically in control OF the cigarette
market, having absorbed the National
Tobacco Works. Of Louisvile: the Hall,
Cigarette Company. Of New York. and
tho Consolidated Cigarette Company.
OF New York. In order to take in these
new companies, the American Tobacco
Company have, from time to time. in
creased its capital stock. in 1891 to
k2a,s35,0 900. which with the accumu-
lated profits, amounted in 1896 to SILL
4 153,71403.
The Plug Trust.
Not content with having secured tile
monopoly OF the cigarette industry, In
sos Mr.. Duke cast an envious eye
upon the plug. chewing and smoking
tobacco and snuff trade Of America,
and he at once began operations which
finally resulted in the control Of these
Industries. Such an undertaking eight
years before would probably have re.
suited in failure, but with the enter
ing wedge Of the cigarette monopoly
1t was now possible.
In the first place nearly all OF the
cigarette factories owned by the trust
produced to some extent plug and
smoking tobacco. and these had al
ready been placed on the market by.
the trust as carly as 1891. the influ-
ence of the cigarette monopoly fore
Ing the jobber to push the sale OF any
goods 1t placed upon the market The
8 trust already owned the National To-
hacco Works, operated by N1arhurg
Brothers, which 1t had purchased in
1891, and which produced plug and
smoking tobacco. and the Gail and AK
Company. purchased at the same time,
which produced snuff and tobacco. It
lad also in 1895 purchased the large
manufactures known as the Butler
Tobacco Works. Of st. Louis. and the
r. Lorilard Company, of New York
besides other smaller concerns among
which were the cheroot works, owned
by F. Whitlock, OF Richmond. which
had been purchased at a cash price of
100000. After purchasing the large
plug manufactures of tho Drummond
Tobacco and the Brown Tobacco Co.
Of st Louis in October, SOS, the Off
GERS Of the American Tobacco Com
pany organized the Continental To-
bacoo Company as branch Of the
trust, with capital OF s75,o0o.0oo,
which took over the plug and smoking
tobacco business of the American To-
bacco Company
Richmond Companies.
In the meantime the American To-
bacco Company had Increased its pre-
terred stock to $4,000 900. common to
Bel 100000 and had total assets
amounting to as2,2s7,754s3
In 1895. The .f,ontrtiental Company.
Of which Mr.. Duke, was president. as
we'll as Of the American Tobacco COM
s pany, announced that 1t owned the
following concerns, In addition to the
concerns turned over BY the American
Tobacco Company, namely, John Fin
FER & Brothers. of Louisville; P. II.
Mayo q Co. OF Richmond: Daniel
scotty & Co., of Detroit F. r. sorg, OF
hiiddletown; Drumnond Tobacco Co.
Of St Louis; J. Wright Company. OF
Richmond; Wright Brothers Tobacco
Co, OF ST. Charles. and P. Lorillard
Company of New York. Ofsthese con-
Germs the two Richmond ones were
purchased at the following prices; P.
". Mayo & Co, s125o,0oo, preferred
stock, sl,aa5,ooo common stock. and
fes,125.00 cash; J Wright Company
$4,000 preferred stock s495,00G
common stock and s41le.s7 cash.
Tho Continental stock when placed
on the market in March 1898. was
worth, preferred SO IA, common "a IA
and sold during the same month as
low as IS preferred and t3 common
The J. Wright Tobacco Company was
4 practically owned by the estate o.
4 Major Fred r. Scott. p. II. Mayo &
Bro. was owned by Mr.. Peter II. Mayo
and Nh. Thomas Atkinson,
The largest single plug producer