The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-13
Committee Has So-CalIed Sugar Trust Investiga-
 tion in Full Swing
PRODUCE 42 PER CENT
 OF SUGAR CONSUMED
MT. Atkins Ayers Beet Sugar Tyants. Were Absorbed By American Sugar Refining Go. By
 Havemeyers Orders

Washington, June 12-Ruling that fa
 facts regarding which former officer of
 the American Sugar Refining company,
 including former Secretary Charles R.
 TIeike, are under indictment and await
 ing trial are essential to the inquiry.
 the House committee of investigation
 into the so-called sugar trust affairs to-
 day required Acting President Edward | F. Atkins, of the company to answer
 questions regarding it's attempts to &C., quire the Pennsylvania Sugar Refining company at Philadelphia. Counsel
 James NJ. Beck for the company inef- l fectually appealed to the committee not : to go into this matter on the ground
 that former officers of the company are
 awaiting trial in November on charge of conspiracy to acquire the Pennsyl- vana property and that their interests would be prejudiced if the committee rejudged the case.
 Chairman Hardwck and the commit- tee overruled this objection, saying the
 committee was directed to investigate
 every phase of the company's operation
 adding there was no intention of pre- ta Judging the case.
 MT Atkins testified he had no direcs
 knowledge regarding the Pennsylvania
 transaction which he said was negotiat-
 ed under the prey Of Henry O. Have
 meyer. He said he protested years ago
 to MT. Hayemeyer against the policy of
 the company acquiring beet sugar plants.
 The company officials point out that t.e
 company. has undergone a thorough
 change of management and of policy
 since the Havemeyer regime.
 Discussing the relations between tue
 company and the beet sugar interests.
 MT. Atkins said
 T asked MT. Havemeyer if It was to be his policy to build up the beet sugar industry at the expense of the cane su- gar refining industry. Ills answer war 1 evasive and I told him if that was to
 l4e hrs lssIs. add sell aix ef-cr. F the American SggaD Refining company
 I subsequently, did sell considerable oi e my stock"
 F Asked why he was opposed to the ' company extending into the beet sugar Q field, Mr Atkins declared if was simply . his opinion as a business man. interested
 in sugar investments. He foresaw in the western field beet sugar in dustry growing which would become a formidable competitor of the American
 company end investor he did not
 think 1t a good proposition to aid a
 rival enterprise. Mir Atkins said he did
 not know at the time he talked to Mir
 Havemeyer that the former head of the
 sugar trust had already invested in
 western beet sugar concerns. Mir Atkins testified today that the American Sugar Refining company's , stock is scattered all over the globe with l9,359 stockholders in November 1910. The
 average individual holdings of stock was
 said to be less than 70 shares and moro ] than 950o shareholders hold ten shares or
 under.
 Control 42 Per Cent
 MT. Atkins submitted q statement 10 show that during 1910 the company manu-
 factured slightly more than AZ per cent f of the total consumption of sugar in the : United States. while the beet sugar com
 panes manufactured l4 per cent. Of the oI 21 cane sugar refineries in the United
 States, the refining company owns seven directly or through subsidiary companies
 and has a stock interest less than & ma
 jorty in four. Of the 63 factories which A produce beet sugar the American com pany is entered through stock ownership q in 3S.
 The statement referred to the govern = ment litigation against the company.
 l Tn the Dlli brought Dy lHe government '' to dissolves the company it read: "No
 act of any officer of the company since r January 1. 1908, is even alleged as being | in restraint of trade. Many of the aver ments in the governments bill are either , inaccurate or have reference to trans
 actions ended prior to January l 1908 or , adiudged lawful in the proceedings , brought in 1892 by the government against this company, in which the United States , supreme court sustained the legality of the company as then constituted. Since this decision of the supreme court the company has, in expanding the , production of sugar and promoting com , merce therein. acquired stocks in various beet sugar companies.
 The company has a reasonable confi- ] dence that the validity of these holdings
 will be sustained as in expansion rather
 than in restriction of trade. These hold inss have however. been steadily reduced in the last three years by sales from time
 to time and with two unimportant ex- : eNrtions the company has only a minor- ts -erest in any of the beet sugar com | panies to which reference is made. All } of these beet sugar companies have indo- pendent boards of directors and are In no respect controlled by the American Eu- : gar Refining company.
 sl The statement set forth that the stock holders of the American Sugar company ] include executors, guardians, churches, | and investment companies, orphan asy-,
 lums, hospitals, etc. M The committee has announced its pur- pose to make one of the most thorough l investigations ever conducted of a great } business by Congress
 Hardwick Is Chairman
 Representative Hardwick of Georgia is
 chairman of the committee.
 The committee first has taken up the American Sugar Refining company. to de- termine whether the corporation is oper- ating in violation of the antitrust or interstate commerce laws. James M. [ Beck, formerly assistant attorney gem eral appeared today as counsel for tho refining company.
 Edwin P. Atkins of Boston said the purpose of the formation of the Ameri- can Sugar Refining company. In 1sS7 was , to put their feet several sugar re- } fineres that had been operating at q floss. Fsl'
 The companies. he said, had been work , ing without profits for a number of years , --------------~-- CONTINUED ON PAGE D