New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-08-11
Odd Won eyer sell any -

ton of individuals or firms TO operate In
that stock" Mr. serkins declared.
Did you buy when low and sell when
high?"
mot necessarily. | never sold one share
OF that stock short in my life
Did you buy and sell through brokers.
and il so can you give US the names OF
some OF them?"
Mr.. Perkins hesitated for some time be-
fore answering. While l was member
Of the firm of ]. p. Morgan & Co." he
finally said II dealt with them. Since then
l have been readjusting my investments
and | am in that process now"
Here Mr.. Lindabury suggested that the
inquiry was getting personal. and Mr..
Beall remarked that the information was
interesting.
In discussing the organization Of the
Steel Corporation Mr.. Perkins said that It
had more than two hundred thousand
stockholders and that more than thirty
five thousand employees were interested as
stockholders under the company's profit
sharing plan.
How much stock has the King Of Eng
land in the Steel Corporation?" Chairman
Stanley asked
Il don't know" said Mr.. Perkins: he
never told me"
The Bond Conversion Plan.
The bond conversion plan was discussed
at length and Chairman Stanley read A
letter written by Judge Gary TO ] P.
Morgan e. Co in 1903. the Morgan firm
having financed the syndicate deal, In
which he said the continuance Of the con-
version plan would be Injurious TO the
corporations credit and hurtful TO the in
terests Of the stockholders" and a reply
from Mr. Morgan cancelling the contract
Mr. Perkins explained that 1903 was one
OF the most disastrous years IN history.
which no one foresaw when the plan was
advanced, and that on that account the
continuance Of the conversion plan 70 the
fun limit contemplated could not be car
ried out The value Of the bonds also had
become too great and the disparity be-
tween them and the preferred stock had
grown too wide as result OF the prevail
ing conditions
Representative Gardner called attention
TO the Steel Plate Association agreement
that was burned up IN 1910 and the wire
pool, against which indictments were re-
Gently brought in New York and asked
Mr.. Perkins II he had ever heard Of them
Mr.. Perkins declared that he never knew
anything about either Of them until they
werc madc public in the press
Mr.. Gardner thought II was cemarkabl.
that a director Of the Steel Corporation
should not know what agents IN subsidiary
companies were doing
Taxes WITNESSES Ingenuity.
Representative Sterling taxed the inge-
nutv Of Mr.. Perkins in questions relat-
ins 70 the transfer Of the stock Of the
subsidiary companies and its influence on
the steel business.
What advantage was there to the stee,
industry" Mr.. Sterling asked when tho
steel Corporation simply took over rhe
stock Of the subsidiary companies into
one ownership"
Il do not know that the transfer ~ he
securities was so much the roin'," said Mr.
Perkins "as 81 was 10 get rhsse plants
in coordinate, cooperative. working or
ganization. There had been severe labor
and commercial disturbances, an1 through
the cooperative spirit II was thought there
would come better results and economies
How did the change in stock ownership
better the labor situation
In the light Of what has happened in
the last ten years" Mr. Perkins answered
ct Is only fair TO say that We men who
came into the corporation TO manage and
direct the policy of the company saw the
question Of labor in newer and broader
light than the men who directed before"
Were there any new directing spirits"
Mr. Sterling asked. You came in and
you were not practical steel man. Who
else came in?"
We'll. II was not so much those who
came i'm as those who went out Of the cor
poration, that made the difference" Mr.
Perkins said.
who went out?"
Il don't know whether my counsel would
object to that question or not"
Il certainly do. for your benefit. their
benefit. and the benefit of all concerned"
said Mr.. Lindabury.
Chairman Stanley then questioned Mr.
Perkins.
Isn't it true" he asked. that the Steel
Corporation is a rope Of sand, that it
doesn't own mill, an acre OF ground or
one material thing, and that the subsid-
iary companies have their own corporate
en1ltNs Even IIle COuIlstl Oh lut steer VT
poratlon has refused to give us the minutes
of those subsidiary companies for that very
reason"
Vigorous Denial from Lindabury.
Here Mr.. Lindabury. counsel for the cor
poration made vigorous denial that he had
refused to produce books and minutes. He
referred 10 the executive session of yes
terday. and TO some arrangement that had
been made there which had not been pub
hcly discussed. He said he had already
turned over minutes Of the subsidiary com
panies after they went into the Steel Cor
poration and he outlined the details of the
steel organization as given the committee
by Judge Gary some time ago.
Representative Bartlett asked Mr. Per-
hins If he knew that Moore q Schley had
majority of the Tennessee Coal and Iron
stock before Judge Gary and II. 6. Frick
went 10 Washington.
~ do not remember I didn't care a rap
about that. | was engaged I'm a great mass
Of detail. II Judge Gary and Mr. Frck
knew it at that time l knew It. was not
concerned about that
rs it necessary in order successfully 10
conduct large business organizations to con-