The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1912-02-01


move q competitor either present or
future 1t denies that the known
commercially available coal and iron
deposits of the United States have
been almost entirely acquired by man.
ufacturing companies for the purpose
of development" 1t says that ap-
proxlmately one-half of the iron ores
Of the United states now commercial-
ly available are owned by private in
dlviduals and are for sale to any
manufacturing comps MES or others
desiring to Purchase the same" ItI
denies that the Tennessee company
was a strong present or probable fu-
ture competitor of the steel corpora
iion at the time OF its acquisition by
the latter" and says that the produc.
iion of steel by said company at the
time of it's aCqui1ition was less than
ia per cent of the total output of
the United States: that the growth had
teen slow and the growth of the
southern demand for its products had
likewise been slow. and that as a CONF
petitor 1. was insignificant compared
with many northern independent COM
panies"
1t admits that in 1907 certain rail-
road companies. IN which T.. II Har-
rman was interested, had placed an
order with the Tennessee company
for about 157,j00 tons OF open hearth
steel rails at 500 per ton or 81 more
than the prevailing price Of Besse-
mer rails" but denies that this order
at once put the Tennessee company
into the position Of an actual COM
petitor OF the Steel corporation and
deny that as a competitor 1t was 'of
great potentiality.' It says that
the cost Of the Tennessee company
Of producing the rails to fill said or
der was over $50 per ton and that
the first shipments of rails under said
order by the Tennessee company were
so defective that the Steel corpora
tion, after It acquired the stock of
said company, was compelled to re-
place a large part of the same"
Ore situation.
The answer denies that the hold
lngs of the Steel corporation of COM
nercially available ores exceed those
OF all other iron and steel interests
combined" 1t says that of the
present available ores OF the United
States the Steel corporation owns or
controls less than 40 per cent. while
in the ores of Cuba and other foreign
countries, upon which the cost of
transportation Is sufficiently low TO
enable such ores to compete with do
mestic ores, the interests of the steel
corporation are less than 10 per cent"
1t admits that at the present time
the ores OF the Lake Superior region
are very important in the steel in
| dustry," but says that an abund-
ance Of commercially available ore
| Is obtainable at many other points
in the United States" 1t denies that
of the ores in the state OF Minnesota
the Steel corporation controlled at the
time of the filing of the petition not
less than 75 per cent" and says THAI
after the surrender OF the Great
Northern ore lease and before the
filing of the petition, the Steel cor
pOratlon controlled approximately on
| ly 60 per cent. of the ores in the state
Of Minnesota" 1t denies that the
steel corporation controls or has con-
| trolled 10 per cent of the ore in
| the state of Michigan" and AYERS
that its control OF Michigan ore at
the time of the filing of the petition
was less than 32 per cent" II also
says that in the states OF New York,
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia,
Teyas and Utah. where vast bodies
cf ores now commercially available
are deposited, the interest of the Steel
orporation constitutes less than one
per cent, and that of the vast deposits
of ores in the Birmingham district
of Alabama, the Steel corporation
controls less than 80 per cent"
The Policy Pursued by the Steel Cor
pOration.
The answer says that continuous
ly since the organization Of the Steel
corporation K has been the declared
and consistently followed policy OF
said corporation to encourage rather
than to restrain the utmost freedom
of trade and commerce; to refrain
from acts of oppression or injustice
to the competitors of said corporation:
to abstain from efforts to harrass
such competitors or to exclude them
from their fair share of Interstate o:
foreign commerce, and to take no
steps intended or calculated to pre-
vent the growth Of other and further
competition. and that such policy has
Attii Ntll hupN " bhb llVhA AllN III
dustry and to the public generally and
the government since the organlza-
tlon of the Steel corporation" 1t says
that without check or embarrass.
ment from said corporation compe-
tition In the iron and steel business
in the United States has constantly
increased since the organization Of
said corporation, that throughout the |
whole industry freedom and growth |
of competition has existed; that tho
vast increase in capacity made by the |
companies controlled by the Steel |
corporation has been insufficient to
maintain its proportion of the iron
and steel business of the country;
that it's average output has decreased |
from approximately 60 per cent. In |
1901 to less than so per cent. in 1911, |
and that this has occurred notwth- |
standing the great increase in the
corporations foreign trade, and not
withstand!ng the fact that this for
eign trade which the Steel corpora
iion has created amounts to upwards |
Of 80 per cent. Of the total foreign |
trade of the country in steel pro-