The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1911-07-07
PROBE ALLEGED
ORE MONOPOLY
Government to Look Into
Control Of Iron Deposits.
LARGE QUANTITY TIED UP

AS3A\OA VS@7ANH
Holdings Of the United States Steel
Corporation Said to Exceed Those
Of All Other Interests Combined
Great Bulk Of This Raw Material
Located in the Northwest.
Washington, July 5.-A special to
the Chicago Tribune says:
I'm the attack which the depart
nent of justice is expected to make
shortly upon the United States Steel
corporation particular attention will
be made to the iron ore monopoly
which that combination has effected.
IN the comprehensive report on
the steel industry made a few days
ago to President Taft by Commission.
or of Corporations Herbert Knox
Smith, the statement was made that,
not only on account of it's great hold
ings Of ore, but also because Of the
peculiar advantages enjoyed In the
transportation of the ore, the United
States Steel corporation occupies an
extremely commanding position In the
iron and steel trade.
Indeed the report concludes, In
sofar as the steel corporations posi-
ton in the entire iron and steel indus
try is of monopolistic character, 1t
is chiefly through its control of ore
holdings and the transportation OF
ORE
consequently, it is to these points
that the government must direct itself
m order to assure the destruction OF
the steel monopoly. The corporations
ore holdings are c~onservatively placed
at more than $500, 000, 900 tons. These
cover what are now regarded as COM
mercially available ores, and exceeded
those Of all other iron and steel inter-
ests combined.
1.-The great bulk of the holdings is
in the Lake Superior region, which
substantially forms the basis of the
steel production Of the country at the
present time. The steel corporation
controls 76 per cent of the holdings in
the whole section, including the Me-
saba and Vermillion iron ranges Of
Minnesota.
Pays Royalty to Owners.
Most of the steel corporations ore
property consisted in 1907 of lease
A11Ar n~3 not nro In fon Row mining
from these it pays royalty. One OF
the leaseholds was acquired from the
Great Northern railway interests,
which had obtained control Of i'm
mense tonnages of ore by purchase or
lease for the protection of traffic.
The royalties stipulated in the
Great Northern lease were and still
are far above the market value and
the only reasonable explanation Of
this extraordinary transaction, accord
ing to the commissioner Of corpora
lions, is that the steel corporation de-
sired to protect the ore either from
being mined and sold to independent
producers, thus possibly depressing
the price, or from being. utilized by
the Hill interests to build up a new
and dangerous competitor in the iron
and steel business.
THE steel corporation disclaimed
any intention to hold of competition
by this lease and asserted 1t merely
desired to strengthen its own reserves.
But whatever the motive for this
transaction, according to the commits
sioner of corporations. its practical
effect was to forestall competition az
well as increase the corporations con-
trolsof the ore of the coun-
tr:. g..
Besides the Great Northern lease
held the steel corporation has many
othera 1t is estimated that two
thirds Of its holdings in the Lake su-
perior region is held in that form.
The common term of q lease is
nifty years, and the effect Of this sys-
TEN is q corner in ore which prevents
others from getting possession Of the
property" t+7ti- -