Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1911-06-09
GARY AGAINST GUT
IN STEEL PRICES
Speech at Directors eetinq Is
Made Public.
STILL FOR COOPERATION
Says laboring Men Have More at
Risk in Reductions Than En-
ployers-Declares for Fair
Dealing.

! New YOrk.-E1Dert- H. Gary, chair
] nan Of the board Of directors of the
United States Steel corporation,
made public the text of the speech
he delivered at the luncheon he gave
to iron and steel manufacturers at
the Metropolitan club here on May
20, at which the Independent action
of the Republic Iron and Steel com
pany in reducing prices was thorough
| ly discussed. The conference was
surrounded with every safeguard
against publicity.
Mr.. Gary argued for continued CO.
operation among the steel makers and
for stability in prices, but his appa-
rent wishes on the price question
were overruled by a general decision
to meet the cuts of the Republic com.
pany. Mr.. Gary touched upon the pos
! sibility of wage reductions, the value
I of fair dealing, and frankness among
the manufacturers, and the rights and
| duties of great corporations in view of
the recent Supreme court decision in
| the Standard OIL case
L have advocated and shall always
advocate, SO long as 1 believe l have
right to do So" said Mr.. Gary, the
| stability of prices, the regularity OF
business conduct on the part of all
that is calculated to recognize and ad-
vance the interests of others.
L have urged you to remember and
l again call attention to the fact that
when you make substantial reductions
in your prices, if you reduce to a
price that is unfair and unreasonable
and you make SO small profit that
it does not yield you a fair return on
your investment and your risk, you at
least place for consideration before
every one the possible necessity of
reducing the cost of production, in
| Guiding prominently if not principally
the wages which you are paying or
may be allowed to pay to the man or
the men in your employ.
DO not forget that the laboring
men-the employees of the corpora
tions-have more at risk when these
questions are considered of reducing
prices below what is reasonable and
fair than the employer You have a
right to run the risk of being COM
PEELED to put their wages below what
they ought to be unless you are driven
to it, and hope under the present cir
cumstances, gentlemen, that whatever
may be done, or whatever may hap
pen as result of present conditions,
you will not reduce the wages of your
employees until you feel it is an abso-
lutte necessity to do So"
Referring to the bombshell the Re-
public company threw into the steel
market by reducing prices, Mr.. Gary
said:
1--WE are confronted with a serious
and disagreeable problem. 1t is not
for me to criticise men nor to pass
judgment on the motives of men,
Whether people who have changed
their minds suddenly are actuated by
motives of cupidity or motives of
necessity is not for me to say
Il would not expect or ask any one
to do anything he believed wrong,
legally or morally; but, on the other
hand, gentlemen, if any one who has
been cooperating in a lawful way, not
in secret, but under conditions wen
known and frequently exposed by all
of us, suddenly changes his opinion
and believes it is for his pecuniary in
terest for the time being to withdraw
from associating with us and declines
to give us any information concerning
what he is doing or proposes to do,
leaving himself free to go to your GUS
toners and mine and get the business
for himself, regardless Of price, and
simply for the purpose of filling his
mill temporarily and securing for him
self a customer who has been your
customer or mine, then l do not hest
tate to say that SO far as / am con-
cerned, l am perfectly willing to let
him stand outside of the circle of
friendly conversation and open and
above board fair dealing and frank
ness in expression, but if l have sui
fcient influence it shall not in the
least affect the relations of all the
rest of u.s."