The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1911-03-04
TINE POTASH CONTROVERSY
German Claims Presented at Wash
ington Are Contradicted by
American Interests.

Washington, ID. c., Jan.-The cotton
growing states are particularly inter-
ested in the potash controversy be
tween the State Department and Ber-
lin. since the future price of fertilizer
is directly affected by the outcome.
German interests have just made rep
resentation to Secretary Knox similar
In effect to those assertions made by
circular letter to the miners through
out the South claiming that the Ger
man potash law, which places PEN
atty on mines selling heavily to Amer
leans at a lower price than has for
merly ruled, is merely q part OF the
general conservation policy Of Ger
many.
According to Ochsimus, leading
German geologist, there are about
$4,000 square miles of potash in one
section Of Germany, each Of these
containing some 100000 tons OF
pure potash. This same authority
states that the annual output from
these mines is about 100000 tons each,
and he figures that if the annual out
put should jump to 100000 tons an
nua1ly, It would still require gu, 500
years to exhaust the supply.
Another of Germany's assertions 10
\ that the law does not discriminate
against Americans The brief of the
American potash buyers committee
submitted to congress points out that,
under the law as recently passed by
Germany, the mines Of the potash
trust in that country were allowed a
proportion of output sufficient to sup
ply the world, while the Independent
mines that had made contracts to sup
ply the United States at reduced
price were limited to one-fourth of
their actual sales already made to US.
I IN addition a penalty of s22 per ton
was imposed for oyerproduction. Thus
the penalty falls exclusively upon
shipments to this country and indi'
rectly upon the consumer.
An effort is apparently being made
TO create the impression that this con
troversy il really contest between
the policy Of the German government
and an American trust. The fact Is
that there is no such complete and
powerful trust in the United States
as this German potash syndicate
This syndicate actually monopolizes
the entire potash supply of the world
save for the two mines that broke
away from the trust and sold to Amer
fcan buyers. In this country there
are about 10 different fertilizer manu-
facturers using potash, and of these
about rs per cent are Independent q
any trust affiliation.
Another claim made by the German
committee at the White House was x
the effect that the American buyers
knew that a law would be passed pro
yiding for government taxes and pen
aIties to be assessed, and that the.
made these contracts with this knoWl
edge Ia mind. The American commit
tee states positively that this informa
ton was brought to them after tn
contracts were made, and used as
IA club tn an attempt to force them Z
give Nd the contracts already enteret
into, which would have reduced tn
itnrice OF fertilizer materially In thi
country.
An oficial high In the government
here il authority for the statemen
that the cost of this controversy mus
! necessarily fall upon the consumer
and that it should. therefore. be sci
u t1aa quickly. While the America,
companies paying d penalty have me
the prices made by the German trus
that pays no penalty. this has bee
done at loss, and should they will
draw from the field because OF this
the price OF fertilizer ID this countr
would be dictated by the Germa
4 monopoly untrammsIled Al Berlin.