The Caucasian., 1907-08-06
IMMENSE PROFITS.
Commissioner Smith Gives Fig
ures About Standard.

Washington, Aug. 6.-Significant
revelations are (5,ade public in report
submitted % President Roosevelt by
Herbert Knox Smith, commissioner of
corporations, concerning the operations
of the Standard Oil company.
| In previous report the means and
methods of the Standard were explain
ed. The present report sets forth the
! results of 'nese methods and the eff
feet they have had on the consume''
of oil and Tn the profits CT the StaHd-
/ ard Oil company 1t deals with prof 5
and prices, showing just how the an
nipulaton of the oil industry by the
Standard has affected the pocletboOks
of the American people.
Commissioner Smith says: The
Standard Oil company is responsible
| for the course of prices of petroleum
| and its products during the last TWEEN
| ty-five years. The Standard has CON
sistently used It's power to raise the
price of oil during the last ten years
not only absolutely. also relatively to
the cost of crude oil
hS otdIudlu u ldS cldlIleU lHdf 1t
has reduced the price CT Oil: that it ha :
been benefit to the consumer. and
that only great combination like the
Standard could have furnished oil al
the prices that have prevailed"
Each one of these claims" says
commissioner Smith, is disprovcd by
this report"
The Increase in annual profits of
! the Standard from 1896 to 1904 was
over S27. .0O0.00 The report says:
The total dividends paid bv the
Standard from 1882 to 1906 were 1851 :
922.9O4. averaging thus 2415 per cert
per year. The dividends, however,
were much less than the total earnings
1t is substantially certain that the en-
tire net earnings of the Standard from
1882 to 1906 were at least S79O, 900 900
and possibly much more.
These enormous profits have been
! based on investments worth. at the
time of their original acquisition. not
more than SIS 900, 900"
In his letter to President Roosevelt
| transmitting the rcnort COMMISSIONS
Smith says:
THE following facts are proven. :.
The Standard has not reduced mar
gins since the neriod in which It hos
been reSnonsible for the prices Of oil
During the last eight wears covered
by this report from 1898 to 1905l il
has raised both prices and margins
Its domination has not been ACQUIRED
or maintained by it's SllneriOr efficinn
cy, but rather by unfair competition
and by methods economically and NOR
ally uniustifiable. The Standard has
superior efficiency in running its own
business: it has as equal Efficiency in
destroying the business of competitors
1t keeps fer itself the profits Of the
first and adds to those the monOpolr
policy of it psfcured by the second
It's profits are far above the highest
possible standard of reasonable com.
mercial return. and have been stead
lily increasing. Finally, the history Of
this great Industry is history of the
persistent use of the worst Industrial
methods, the execution of exorbitant
prices from the consumer and the So
curing of excessive profits for the
small group of men who, over a long
series of years, have thus dominated
the business"
In few days another section of the
report will be made public setting forth
the importance of price discrimination
In restraining the business of compet-
itors and augmenting the profits Of the
Standard