The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-06-17
Former President Of Whole
sale GrOCGrS Interviewed
At Summer Camp
HOPES OFFICIALS WILL GO
TO BOTTOM OF The CASE
Says He LIS No Longer Connected With
Association But Is Sure the Mem
bers VIII Court Most
Thorough Investigation

Southern Wholesale Grocers' association,
and one of the defendants named in the
petition of the government asking for the
dissolution of the association is still at
his summer camp on Lost creek a few
miles west of Parish, in Walker county.
He will remain there for few weeks
longer, according to his original plans.
He had heard nothing of the fling of
the petition for injunction against the
Southern association until a reporter for
The Age-Herald handed him a copy of
yesterday mornings Age-Herald at
o'clock yesterday afternoon.
He read only two or three paragraphs
and seemed to be relieved.
well, when 1 was honored by a visit
from newspaper man in this out-of-the
way corner of the country l thought
something really great had happened"
he said.
What do you think of my camp. /
think these woods, hills, the creek and the
old mill are magnificent"
Is Road Builder
Mr. Van Hoose had just come In from
where he is building a road around the
warm, dust begrimed and tired He had
on workman's colored shirt with the
sleeves rolled to the elbow. His arms
were sunburned his face was tanned.
He was the picture of rustic health and
showed that he was determined not to be
worried by federal injunction suits and
investigation.
He would talk about most anything but
the suit. He called attention to the
wreckage that had been left by a cyclone
that passed over the spot about a year
of the landmarks of the community half
century ago, the old dam whose founda-
ton had stood for more than so years.
Finally he was induced to talk on the
main subject.
IT feel certain that I can say for every
member of the Southern Wholesale Gro
GERS association, as well as for myself,
though l am no longer connected with the
organization, that we are eager for a full
and thorough investigation of the ASSOC
citation and its workings" he said. I'm
deed, we. have been asking for such inves-
LEGATION for years.
Is Not Member
'T am no longer connected with the as
sociation. do not know that the firm of
which l am a member is still a member
of the association.
The charge is made, / believe, that the
Southern Wholesale Grocers association
was operated to check or break down
competition. The facts will not bear out
this contention. When I was made pres
ident of the association In 1900 there were
$50 wholesale grocers in the southern
states. Now there are HOO wholesale gro
GERS in the south, and only about IS per
cent of them have ever belonged to the
association. If the associations objects
were to prevent competition, 1t has been
a failure.
eff the wholesale grocers have violated
the antitrust law, then other trades
and professions of a business character
are guilty of far more serious offense.
ut is a fact that the big wholesale
houses in the coast towns like New
Orleans, Savannah. Charleston and Rich
n,ond have opposed the Southern Whole
sale Grocers' association. They claim
that 1t gives advantages to the interior
wholesaler in the purchase of goods from
manufacturers and Jobbers that prevent
the big coast city dealers from MAX
ing the large profits they could If it were
rot for the association. The association
makes it possible for the small dealer
to get goods at the same prices as
the big dealer who is able to buy In
larger lots What could be fairer than
this? The small man should certainly
have as much advantage In prices as the
big man.
Does Not Elk Prices
1.-THE charge that the association fixes
prices is not true. Prices are fixed by
the manufacturer and cannot be changed
by the wholesaler or the retail dealer.
The man who manufactures a special
brand Of goods has right to fix his
price and he also has right to force
the dealer to sell at the fixed price or
refuse to sell him.
The Southern Wholesale Grocers' as
ISOLATION is the victim of peculiar con-
dition. The country had been wrought
up to fever heat over the advancing
prices of necessaries. The dealers had
no control over this condition. James
Hill is right when he says that there
liz a shortage 81 production. We must
produce more foodstuff In this country
or prices will continue to climb The
dealer cannot reduce prices. That is i'm
possible.
when the people began to totter I'M
der the heavy burden of high prices
they looked about for the cause. The
retailer denied the charge of extortion
and the people naturally turned to the
wholesaler. The Wholesale associations
are now bearing the brunt OF the peo-
pies wrath.
"But we are glad that the entire sub
feet is to be siftcd to the bottom. /
have no fear of the result. When I
was president of the association l asked
repeatedly when complaints were made,
that the federal authorities take up the
matter and make a full investigation.
All the books. letters and other papers
of every kind in the possession of the
association were offered for Investigation
In any manner that the officials saw
fit.
Omcials Investigate
"The federal officials at Birmingham
did at one time make an investigation
Of the affairs of the association. Tho