Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1907-07-31
GOVERNMENTS ACCESS
TO TRUST BOOKS
How the Information Against the
American Tobacco Co. Was Ac-
quired.

Washington. ID. c., July 22.(Special
Correspondence to the Republican,
An examination of the petition recent
ly filed by the government in the case
OF the United States against the
American Tobacco Company and 9TH
ers apparently confirms the reports
| that the government has had access TO
the books of the company and thus OBJ
tanned probably the greater part Of the
evidence upon which the prosecution
is based. Names and dates. circum-
stances surrounding the purchase of
competing concerns and the price paid
| in stock, bonds and cash. are given
with an exactitude and fidelity to de-
tail impossible without the most care
full examination OF the books them
selves. Mr.. James Il. Duke. president
of this concern. stated some months
ago that the company believed IL was
conducting business lawfully. AID IL
was reported the agents Of the gov
eminent were examining the books
with the consent Of the company. This
report is apparently sustained by the
mass of details published in the petit
ton. The magnitude Of the operations
VI lHiS coHlpdHS nave never been De-
fore made public. The defendant con-
Germs. all of which are alleged to be
owned or controlled by the American
Tobacco Company. with the exception
OF the Imperial Company. have a capt.
talization and bonded Indebtedness OF
more than half billion dollars. As the
internal revenue bureau keeps tab on
the purchase OF all leaf and the output
of all manufactured tobacco. the fig
ures in the petition are official They
show that of the entire product OF the
United States in smoking and plug to-
bacco during 1896. amounting to 1863
million pounds. the defendants pro-
duced 2s2 million pounds or four
ninths of the whole. OF the %, 600 COS
pounds Of snuff, they produced 1880.
900. or almost 90 per cent. They man.
ufactured four billion 800 million cigar
cites out of the billion 500 million
total: 905 million out of S95 million lit
tie cigars and 347 million cigars or
slightly more than ten per cent. The
report for the year 1906 for the Ameri-
can Tobacco Company alone. shows
preferred stock OF IS millions. common
stock 40 millions. s per cent bonds s.
millions. The dividends on the pre-
ferred stock amounted to 6 per cent
and on the common stock to 22n per
cent. and s6,754.231 was carried over to
the surplus which amounted to $780,
500 600. The total assets of this COM
pany are given as S27s.s2s. 5e4. The pc
tition gives the history of the acquir-
ing of every concern connected with
the trust and is most interesting and
elaborate document. In fact. the legal
verbage which makes such documents
so dry is conspicuously absent. and ex-
cept for the request that the court
take action the petition reads more
like a history and prospectus than L
legal document.
Washington is asking whether there
is break in the relations between
President Roosevelt and Senator Lodge
of Massachusetts. The two have al
ways been fast friends and IL has been
generally understood that Senator
Lodge spoke for the administration on
the floor of the Senate. In his address
before the State Dairy and Food COM
missioners at jamestown. II. b. Need
ham. of this city. viciously attacked
Senator Lodge. accusing him of being
tied up with 4 combination of whisky
men. He charged that Mr.. Lodge de-
feated very important amendment TO
the agricultural Appropriation bill I'M
der the influence of the lobbyists for
the whisky men. While thus accusing
Senator Lodge. Mr.. Needham praised
the part taken by President Roosevelt
in securing pure food legislation. The
episode would have attracted no atten-
ton here had IL not been that both Mr..
Needham and Senator Lodge are sup
posed to be close to the White House.
Mr. Needham is manager Of the ''Peo-
pies Lobby" sometimes called the
Little Brothers of the Poor" which is
soliciting contributions from the public
to maintain headquarters here to keep
the newspapers informed as to the
progress OF the whisky fight and other
matters in which the lobby is inter-
ested.
An interesting discussion took place
at the convention OF State Dairy and
Food Commissioners over the use of
personalities in canned goods Sc
bastian Mueller. general manager for
| the II. ] Heinz Company of Pitts
burg delivered an address on the
| Preparation of Fruits and Vegeta-
bles without the use of Artificial Pre-
servatives." He maintained that such
conservatives were unnecessary and
claimed his company had discarded
them. His Investigations had con-
WINGED him that the only way to deal
with artificial personalities such as
| benzoate of soda, was to prohibit their
use altogether. Charles E Houdsn OF
! Terre Haute, Ind. and A. G. Richard
| son of Rochester maintained that
limited quantity of benzoate of soda
| was not injurious when used as a pre-
| sentative. Prof. E F. Ladd, Food
\ Commissioner Of North Dakota. spoke
| on the bleaching of flour which he
termed fraud pure and simple" F.
| w. Magruder. chief chemist Virginia
| Agricultural Department. discussed the
| quantity clause and the Pure Food act
and Dr. VIM. Freer. Penna-. Agricul-
| tural Station, read a paper on Spice
Standards" Others were read and
there was considerable discussion of
past and future legislation.