Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-01-19
fHE POWER OF PUBLICITY
Important Work of Bureau of
Corporations.
surprislng Results shows in Report
of Comminsiop-System IL Effective,
Dut Yet efOrms
Brought About with No Ill Eff
fects on Business.

The following report of Herbert Knox
Smith commissioner of corporations, was
issued THE bureau o. corporations,
ever since its crea ton, has urged broad
federal system of corporate publicity,
which shall give the public plainly the
essential facts OF our great businesses.
The bureau Itself has been steadily APP
plying such publicity to interstate busl-
ness. though necessarily covering only a
few corporations If that work has given
substantial benefit to the public and bust
| ness, 1t has proved the case for a broad
er system. For the last seven years with
n STAFF of specially trained men, the bu
reau has collected complete Informa ton
about certain selected corporations or In
dustries; has stated plainly the meaning
thereof, and published 1t in reports, This
publicity has given surprising results for
the limited number OF Industries and cor
porations which the bureau could cover
with it's small appropriation. The follow
| ing review of these results is the best
argument FOR corporate publicity;
In 1906 the bureau published report
| describing n great system Of railway dis
ordinations enjoyed by the Standard Oil
company. During the investigation, or
within six months thereafter, the rail-
| roads concerned cancelled every rate
which tho report condemned as Illegal, as
well as many others criticised as inequi-
| table. Further reports published in 1907
described the Standard Oil company. its
| investment, earnings, and profits. Many
| Independent oil concerns testified that
oil these publications caused a substan-
i'm N 20 nj
petroleum business. In 1899 Congress
| practically repealed the retaliatOry duty
which had prevented imports OF petro-
| eum from the most important foreign
producing fields, and these reports We're
also largely used in connection with that
| action.
| I'm 1903 and 1909 the bureau published
three reports on the cotton exchanges
| The New Orleans Cotton Exchange at
once entered into cooperation with the
| bureau, and voluntarily adopted certain
important improvements In methods a
report of the American Cotton Manufac-
turers' associa ton. adopted in May, 1905
| states
Your committee would express their
hearty commendation and approval of the
recent = of the bureau of corpora
tons with reference to the question Of
| cotton exchanges.
| In 1909 the bureau issued report
on the tobacco combination Uhe Ameri-
| can Tobacco company. The beneficial
| results were at once apparent. The to-
| bacco combination promptly abandoned
the use Of the secret subsidiary concerns
exposed by this report and formerly EN-
ployed against independence. Many in
| dependent manufacturers stated that this
! work lad caused the cessation OF Vari-
| Gus Objectionable methods of competl-
| tion some even saying that bat for the
work of tho bureau they might have
| been forced out Of business. In 1909 the
| bureau prepared a report on prices OF
| tobacco. which was largely used In Con-
| gress in connection with a material in
/ crease in the internal revenue tax on to-
bacco products.
I'm 1909 a preliminary report on water
| powers was published. 1t showed the
strong tendency toward concentrated
control OF great water powers, and at
| tracted wide public attention to the sub
/ ject. A special committee Of the Mich.-
gan Legislature, appointed to investigate
water powers in that State, asked and
received the cooperate of the bureau
i
in its work.
Two reports on the taxation o. cor
Pord'ioi's III '"e Ne" flS'duu anu Nl"-
Gle At'aHtic states We're pup4'Sheo III I'''
anu 4'lV' ieSpec'Ne'y' AHeS lave peeH
iarseN useu oy puD'c oi'''a.S' a CONF
n''''ee OF 'he hhooe IN'ahH 4'eS'S'"tu'e'
IN nS report quotes Win dPF''N"' H""l
one OF me bureaus reports ana recon-
menus Iesis"'orS III acco'u"h' there
WIN Inc private use was also very
large Inc international lax aSsocla-
tioN' III Septeh'peF' I'IV' aoop'ed '"e ioi-
'o"'Hs 'e9o'ul'oH'
resoNeu' mat th'S conference COM
IiendS t'e recent computation by tHe
cH''eu Sta'eS BUREAU OF corporations OF
"'a'e laws ie'a'4's 10 corPora'e 'aAat'""'
anu urges 'He cary Puolc"tioh OF sl""ar
0o',' t p, Vi '"e iN"s oi o'"e' 9'"'es
anu 4ei'''oi 'eS 'O'"''iS 10 'Ae same SUP
jet,
ne 'N'eAu pHpi's'eo' III l"' ana
4'iV' '''ieo iep0l IS On transportation py
""'e' III ''e O"''e" "'@'es' 4HeF set
ioi'" e"isNHs waterway Cohui!ohS' with
oi'''1'S'i'S ".'u 'us s's'''''s '"e'eoh' IN
the present uctiNo 'ii'ereSt III Waterways
those reports nave Dee" very generally
USED Inc report Oh terminals appears,
from widespread euitoriai comment TO
nave Drought iorc'pIy 10 pubhc atten-
tioh Inc vital importance 100 long over
Iookeo' OF water 'ei"n'a's' inns WORK
or the bureau recently presented before
the Atlantic Deeper waterways asso-