The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-16

A retail coal monopoly now has Chica- go at it's mercy, a recent consolidation of
 the two big competitors having left only two per cent of the coal supply of the | main business district to be accounted | for. The City Fuel company had 46 ; ards and the Lill-Robinson 20 scattered | over the city. The president of the com blned coal concerns is Fred w. Upham
 l chairman of the Board of Review which | has final say about the tax assessment | of the skyscrapers, banks and department | stores and of the real estate which is 1 figured by the square inch when a sale | is made. The coal trade of the big tax | payers gradually has shifted to the Upham concern and Mir. Upham was a treasurer | of the Taft campaign preliminaries. He 1 has stated that his company "probaoly | had from 70 to 30 per cent, or even more"
 of the soft coal trade for the down town | office buildings. 'rhe business of the City Fuel company was about S1o, 900 GOO | last year. he said. Complaint has beea | growing in recent years that the tax bur
 Ger levied on the residence and outlying
 districts was all out of proportion to the | taxes paid down town. Reports conflict | whether Mr. Upham will have to devote l all his time to the coal business and will
 resign from the taxing body or will con l tinue to serve-the public The outcome 1 is awaited with interest. He has declared
 that the combine is not going to raise prices. The weather regulates the brice | Jt coal he said. When We have a pad | winter like that of two wears ago when the railroads were blocked and practt-
 caily no coal was delivered in the city
 Tor weeks, the price naturally increased
 AS long as the weather does not inter-
 fere with delivery by the railroads the
 price will remain unchanged. Just now
 coal prices are low and the mining in
 dustry Is depressed. There has been ar
 over production and at many places they
 are selling bituminous at less than cost ;
 The self imposed safeguarding o> hant,
 lns by means of examinations for clean.
 ing house associations, a plan known as
 the Chicago plan" because 1t origin ! tef
 n Chicago. has been given momentum
 rom the announcement made in Wash
 lhgton by Comptroller of the Currenc, Lawrence O. Murray, that he would cor dlaly aid clearing house associations f, auopt and carry out this system Mir
 Murray's recent declaration that all ,Iegl r
 ins house associations could well 1dop ! the system urged two conditions as es
 sentlal; First, a competent examiner yyitl
 lAe confidence of every bank, and Sec
 ondly, an efficient clearing house com 3 lhlttee to take prompt action when nm = sale or dangerous conditions are report $ SN' -hVAc thdh pllt-ialI or the total bank l. ing power of the country would be sub = jected to this additional safeguard if II, e efforts of Mr. Murray for the genera z adoption of the plan prove successful 2 The il reserve cities which were fast f l. aGopt the plan are Kansas City. Minnc |, apolis and St. Paul, St. Joseph, Los AT /, geles, San Francisco. Milwaukee. phila !, delphia, Oklahoma City. Nashville an O Cleveland. In Chicago the clearing hour: e association held many discussions in 19O
 for in the west particularly theorists wer