The Sentinel=record., 1912-05-24
CANNY SCOT
 SHOOK TREE
JOHN STEVENSON TELLS HOW HE BUILT PLANTS AND SOLD
 OUT TO THE TRUSTS.
Made Splendid Profits on Each Sale and Following Scotch Habit Took Bonds as His Share of the
 Purchase Price.

NeW 1uTk, May E3.--JOhn Steven son Jr., Scotchman, and a relativ, of Robert Louis Stevenson, enIivenet the hearings in the federal suit tc dissolve the United States Steel Cor. poration, today when he told in 4 rich Scotch accent of the various deals by which he sold out half a dozen steel properties to the Reid Moore syndicate, John w. Gates and the steel corporation itself, each time striking profitable bargain. All cf Steyenson's former properties now are constituent parts of the so-caI I'd trust"
 Entering the employ of the Car negie Steel company in 1875 when his fellow Scotsman, Andrew Carnegie. was making his reputation as an iron master, Stevenson in 1892 established at New Castle, Pa, the first success ful tin plate mill in this country, he said. It was capitalized at $150,000 Ten years later. after selling out this and four other steel plants which he subsequently, built, he started the Sharon Steel company, merged it with the Union Steel company and then sold out to the steel corporation, talk ing for the Sharon interests $13,000, 900 in the corporations bonds, he said. He had built the Sharon steel plant, he remarked, to shake the apple tree again
 You didn't get shares for your in- teresf?" asked H. E. Cotton, attorney for the government.
 /No sir, bonds said Stevenson. v f~That seems to be Scotch habit" Commented R. " Lindabury, attorney for the steel corporation, apparently referring to the fact that Andrew Carnegie had taken bonds when he sold the Carnegie Steel company to the corporation.
 No sir" retorted the witness That was wisdom. I'd been getting too much common stock in other deals and there was too much gambling about that"
 Stevenson told how he sold his Shenango Valley steel plant.
 Let's see," he said. "There was $3O0,0O0 stock in the company, $150,- O00 bonds and the cash profits brought it up to an even million. l was ly- ing in bed with broken leg and my wife and children were begging me to sell 1t. told w. E. Rice, my pres ident, to sell. He sold it to the same old crowd that was bobbing u3 every where about that time, for $5,5O010o in common and preferred stock of tue National Steel company"
 Who was that crowd?"
 @Oh, Judge Moore, Dan Reid and W. B. Leeds"
 His Shenango Valley tin plate, he sold to the American Tiu Plate com pay for sS57,OOO preferred and the same amount of common stock of the latter company, he said.
 Could you have got cash?"
 of we had all demanded money from that crowd in those days l hay' my doubts if we could have got it."
 Was competition keen in thos' days?"
 Tt got worse and worse the long CT was in the business
 1t was because of there being to many wire mills in the business tn witness said, that he surrendered h. NeY Castle wire and nail plant to W Gates, who had organized the Con solidated Steel & Wire Go. In lS9 there were S6 wire plants and com petition in two or three years ha driven all but T. out of the busine J he declared. He said there had bee meeting of wire nail manufactures in Cleveland, where it was agreed fix prices at $1.50 a keg.
 ''When the meeting was adjourne for lunch. Frank Baackes went dow
 and sold by wire 10000 kegs at $l.fo said Stevenson. "I was going dow for the same purpose and the ter graph operator handed me Baacke telegram by mistake 1 stuffed 1t my pocket and took 1t back to U Chairman of the meeting What sh' We do with him said 'kick hl
 down stairs, said the chairman T can't l said, he's a bigger man th'
 am"
 This was Frank Baackes, now VI