The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1907-08-05
Eylu
Proven False BY Report OF Com
missioner OF Corporations
Made Public Yesterday
Its History Is Persistent Use Of Worst Indus
trial Methods Exaction Of Exhorbitant
Prices and Securing of Excessive
Profits

washington AIS .-Signlhean
4 revelations werg made public tcda
\ II report submitted to Presidea
! Roosevelt III Herbert Knox Smith
Il, commissioner Or corporations. con
| corning the operations OF the stand
i afd CHI Ccmpane
H IA previous report the means and
4 methods d the standard were explain
i ct Tho present report sets forth the
results q these methods and the ef.
1 i' they have had ON tho consumer
and GA tha profits oil the company. II
III deals with profits and prices, show
Il ms Just hoW the manipulation al the
/ el industry by tho Standard has ali
4 fected the pocketbooks oil the Amer
y lean people. Commissioners smith
| ass
I The Standard has repeatedly claim
ed that it has reduced the price
I q Git that it has been benefit to
1 tho consumer, and that only d great
! combination like The Standard could
4 have furnished oil at the prices that
| hayo prevailed.
l Each one % these claims is dis
l proved by this report
The STANDARD has consistently usel
i III power To ealse TIC price of oifi
during tho last ten years. not only
! absolutely bur also relatively to the
] cost of crude oil.
| The statistical basis for this con
y ciusion il very broad founded upon |
a vast number Of prices directly col |
| lected b. tho Bureau from thou |
] sands Of retail dealers throughout the
/. country as well as from various 9th.
LEI sources, arranged and averaged
with the utmost care, verified where
ever necessary, and iii the final re.
lsnts apportioned Or weighted" ar
| curding TO the amount Of business
9oF quantity OF tho article involved. Il
Very careful computations Of the !,
Ieost Of refining, transporting. and 4
marketing have been made. by-pro
lducts have been included with care !.
LuIIg weishtcd" prices, and, as viii !
hppear by the body Of the report it
Eei these conclusions, while briefly !,
Stated in this letter OF submittal, are d
/ tho final results from most elaborate .
fnd indisputable calculations. t.
( The results are given chiefly in the
,snape Of "margins;' that is, the dit i
ference in cents per gallon between
Ehe cost CT crude oil which the Stand. n
|arI buys aad the prices OF the pro. !;
ducts thereof whica it sells These y,
sf'nargins of iourse are the really
facts. representing that ~
bart of tho price for which the Sanl !,
lard is responsible. IN
Prices of oil products may rise or y
fell slightly without affecting the pro- T.,
hts of the Standard because of o,
lchange in the Ihce of the crude oil 70
Though the Standard also fixes with
r. certain limits even the price Of O.,
Iride. But the margin" the differ q,
lace between the price of crude and IN
he price of the finished products. is ~
ways a true indication of price pol -
.cy and profits. w
Importance OF Small Margins. cr
There are two varieties OF raw ma -
|eral Of essential Importance Penn IA
fvlyania crude oil and Lima crude oil. -
fhe crude ell OF the other fields -
10Th By reason CT their very recent 10
development and by reason of -
aarked difference in quality, do not -
Inect in any significant way the 81
,rices herein considered. fe.
The average margin between Penn wl
ylvania crude Gil and the iilumina- a.,
ing oil sold by the STANDARD through w
ut the country. after deducting ii,,
lght costs. from September, 1907
o the end of 1899. was SO cents PEI ~.
alTon: from 1900 to 1902. inclusive, 6 20,
ents per gallcn; and from 1903 t. IF
une. 1865. &c cents, or an increase tbe
( 10 cents during these eight years. he
tben it is remembered that from OF orr
snt to cent per gallon constitutes 4 VA
cod profit on the business. the meaa- obi
lg Of an increase Of IS in the last ,e-
ight years covered by this report Is ,ao
rident. even as applied to inumina vlo
ng Gil alone. wei
The tremendous Importance of the ,br
.creass 10 margins can be fully ap- Van
siated oais tt consideration OF the
sosaicus output Of the STANDARD r
lie average Increase in the margin afg
u the products OF both Pennsylvania
ii Lima crude oil eombned( taking