The San Francisco call., 1908-10-23
SHOWS UP POWDER
MONOPOLY METHODS
r. S. WaddeII, Former Sales
Manager of Trust, Tells of
the Elimination Process
Competitors Undersold and War
Carried into Ranks OF
Rivals Employees

NEW YORK. oct. 22.-Methods al
legged to have been employed by the so
called powder trust 20 gain control
OF the powder trade in the United
States were described by Z. \ Waddell,
former general sales agent IN me
United States for the big powder COM
pany al I6day's session Of the hearing
in the government suit against the
company for alleged violation OF the
sherman antitrust law. He mad oe-
clared thai the defendant company con
Irols between 81 and IS per cent OF the
trade in gun powder and 90 per cent
OF the trade in blasting powder ! O.
day he told Of the formation or the
Southern powder company. which was
organized in Cincinnati with mills IN
Georgia and absorbed by the big CON-
pany q few months later.
we went right after the Southern as
soon as they entered the market" said
Waddell The fight continued until The
general roundup IN July. 1896
What DO yeu mean by the general
roundup was asked.
Il mean the complete elimination OF
competition by absorbing the compeu-
tors" replied the witness.
FOREIGN AGREEMENT
Waddell said he had been informed
by the officers OF the company that
there was an agreement with foreign
manufacturers on sales OF dynamite
This information was given him. he
said, after foreign mills had been
erected in Jamestown. and was known
as the Jamestown agreement
4 was told that one OF our officers
had been TO Europe and that thereafter
we would have no further trouble said
he.
This. he said. was when there was
some disturbance in the market over
the cutting Of prices in smokeless pow
der He said d new agreement was
drawn by members of the pool after
practically all the competitors had been
absorbed. When a paper identified by
Wa6deu as a copy OF the agreement
was presented counsel for the defense
objected. Waddell was rather severely
handled by counsel for the defense on
cross examination and was asked why.
when he found that the paper was in his
possession after he had left the employ
Of the company. he did not return it
10 the company.
1t never occurred TO me" he an
swered. 7 could have taken trunks
fun Of records had I wanted them"
Did YOU find this paper when you
were concerting a scheme TO build a
plant and sell it to the company 90
asked the cross examining attorney.
DEFENSE AGAINST TRUST
NO. was concerting no scheme. I
was preparing to defend myself against
the powder trust"
Continuing his description of methods
which. he alleged, were used to absorb
or crush competitors. Waddell told Of
fights which were made by his COM
psny against the Indiana powder com
psny. The Indiana company, which
was formed in 1897. had Ohio. Ken
tucky. Michigan, West Virginia and
one or two other states for its man
ket. He was directed by Eugene Du-
pont and Z ". owen to go to Terre
Haute and open the fight against the
Indiana company There he met the
chief officer of that company. I told
them that they had reduced the sales
OF our company $4,000 10 10000 kegs
OF powder in the territory they occu-
pied said he, 'fand that we could not
stand for that, but would fight to re-
gain the trade.
METHOD OF ELIMINATION
4 proposed that the Indiana COM
pany be organized with S1O0 600 capi-
tai Of which the Hazard powder com
asny should take 81 per cent. and the
either stock holders z9 per cent. But
they refused TO enter into any agree
ment with them. They said that they
thought they had a perfect right to
manufacture powder for their mines;
that they wanted TO be friendly with
as, and hoped there would be no fight.
! told them that we would put I'D
mills near them and begin the fight
by under selling them to their own
.rade"
WsddeI then told Of the przaniza-
tiOn OF the Great Northern supply
rompany TO sell not only powder but
Ehovels, picks and supplies and to the
employment of two men named Ramsey
snd Backus to go among the miners to
stir I'D dissensions between the miners
End the operators association These
men made speeches at the miners meet
ings The fight lasted until January
1902, when the Indiana company went
under and sold out to the pool.