The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-06-11
Standard Oil Company Puts
Money Into Restaurants.
Independents Being Crushed
by Cheap Places.
PLAN NATION WIDE CHAIN
Real Estate Business Also to
Be Made to Pay Tribute.
Bakers Monopoly and GrOcers
Pay Capitalists Well.

New York, June 11.-For some
weeks moderately worded circulars oil
statements have been exposed in
prominent places setting forth briefly
the plan of the corporation which
operates a large number of restaur-
ants in New York and in other cities
of combining certain real estate ac-
Invites with their business. The an
nouncements are SO worded as to con-
Vey the impression that the promoters
of this plan have confidence in It's
feasibility. certain that it will return
reasonable profit to those who make
investment in this proposition.
The plan amounts to no more than
this: The restaurant company, in
stead of leasing rooms or buildings
for its business, purposes buying suit
buildings adapted to that business.
The promoters figure that there will
be a large saving because the interest
upon the investme in buildings and
lands will be much less than the en-
tai prices paid. These already amount
yearly to very large sums. Many of
those who have read these circulars
have thought or said that this is an
other expansion of the Stand, I'd Oil
company's business. The belief has
widely prevailed that the Standard Oil
company, as a company, has furnished
much of the capital which has made
the extension of this chain of restaur-
ants throughout New York and also
in other cities of the country possible.
One of the features developed by
the business done by this reSta urant
company is the complaint which many
independent restaurant keepers have
made. They have been saying that
these restaurants again exemplify the
disposition of the Standard Oil COM
pany to secure practical monopoly of
various markets in which the stand
ard Oil company is interested. The
reply which has been made to this ac
cusation is this: These restaurants
have prospered because literally hun
dreds of thousands daily patroniZe
them. These patrons are for the most
part men and women whose incomes
are small or who work for wages.
They would not patronize the restaur-
ants if they were not satisfied with the
food, the service and the prices.
Perhaps in no more striking manner
is the issue between those who control
large capital which is put to use in
various retail business and those small
independent prOprietorS who insist
that they are crushed by this large
capital illustrated.
The True Story.
A few days ago one of the leading
officers of the standard Oil company
of New Jersey admitted that what is
often called Standard Oil money has
been invested in, this restaurant cor
poratiOn. Furthermore, additional
Standard Oil money, so called, has Sc
cured for the purpose of financing the
company into that greatly enlarged
field which it purposes to occupy
namely, the Establishment of a great
real estate department and also ma
tion-wide chain of cheap restaurants.
This, however. is Standard Oil mon
ey only in the sense that men of capt.
tai who are prominent in the Standard
Oil company have, as individuals, IN
vested considerable amounts in the
restaurant company. 1t is plain,
however, that the individual stock
holders in the Standard Oil company
must find some means of reinvest-
ing the money which they receive in
the form of dividends or interest.
Some of these men of capital have
been disposed recently to make in
vestment of this kind in various in
dustrial companies. And it has often
been remarked that this disposition
justifies the belief that the men of
great affairs of the Standard Oil conn.,
pany are convinced that the industrial
field offers as good if not better OPP