New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-28
New Protest to Sulzer-Alleged
Monopoly by American Bank
Note Company Is
Denied.


lean Bank Note Company. There are ne
So shares of the company and they are
owned By 1.2Sl stockholders scattered all
over the world. Among these. Elk MEM
hers of the Stock Exchange. not gov
srnors. hold 1Si0 shares. or 1.oS per cent
of the total OF these the bulk is held
bv brokers for customers. Forty-seven OF
The ffty-siX names of Stock Exchange
members alleged to be stockholders turn
ont upon investigation to be the names OF
men who do not own share
Members Of the Produce Exchange held
a special meeting yesterday 10 consider
the bill introduced in the Legislature by
Senator Stillwell regarding dscrimina
lions 10y exchanges. but President Aspe-
gren stated that no report would be
made until to-day. lie said. however
that il the bill were passed 1t would
Mace exchanges on the same basis As
public service corporations. which. under
the law. are not permitted to refuse 10
render service. This bill Il bad, he said,
and should not be passed.
Protest to Sulzer.
Charles Elwell Perkins. a prominent
BROOKLYN merchant and director Of the
Irving National Bank and the Kings
County Trust Company. Yesterday sent a
letter to Governor Sulzer protesting
against the passage of the proposed bill
for increasing the stock transfer tax to 81.
The State Of New York" said Mr..
Perkins. lis spending hundreds Of
millions Of dollars in widening the Erie
Canal endeavoring 10 regain the DIS
,rbuting trade in drygoods and gram.
which is now centred in Chicago, Duluth.
81. Louis and other Western cities. but
II has gone. and probably VIII not come
back. The city. however. has grown to
be the great financial centre of the
country and competitor Of London, the
financial centre Of the world.
"But to-day every conceivable thing j.
being done TO hamper and discredit the
men who have made it possible for the
great interests Of the world 10 come here
for financial relief. Now the suggestion
comes that every one OF these customers
mist nay a double tax-.i on every hun
dred shares-for the privilege Of doing
business in our great city. ] hope your
administration will not be looked back
upon by posterity as the one which not
only INSTRUCTED the progress of our great
city. but the one which turned the cur
rent 10 the cities OF other states
4 special committee appointed by the
Merchants Association TO consider ana
report upon the various bills affecting the
Stock Exchanges gave hearing yester-
day The committee consists of Edward
D. Page, Professor Joseph +. Johnson
Alfred f. Marling. +. II. Outororidge'
Welding Ring and William V. King.
The following persons appeared in OPP
position to the bill which proposes to IN
crease the tax on stock transfers. stoch
Exchange members. Eugene Meyer jr'
NJ. y. Fuller and II. *. Bird. CONSOLE
dated Exchange. VI. r. De Aguero presi-
dent: W. L. s. Webster and ogden -.
Budd and J. Walter Wood. arbiirage
broker: T. II. y. Mcknight. treasurer OF
the Pennsylvania Company, and charies
c. Du Bots, controller Of the American
Telephone and Telegraph COMPANY.
The speakers were a unit in agreeing
that an active market for securities was
essential TO the financial welfare OF the
country and that the necessary activity
was due largely TO activity Of the room
traders.
Mr.. Never said that since the - tax
took effect. in 1905. no less than $33'ooW'
Of the $40. .Ooo OF state taxes had been
paid from stock transfers, falling upon
ore single industry. More than ~ per
cont of the money, he said. had come
from New York City. He said that the
effect Of the increase would be TO drive
business from tho city. London being AL
ready a competitor Mr.. Meyer added:
Evil Not in Stock Exchange.
There isn't a stock exchange In the
world whose business is carried on 70
fairly as between the broker and the Gus
toner as il IS here The evil is not in the
Stock Exchange"
Mr. De Asuero attacked the tax BILL de-
clarng that II was the most outrageous
tax In history. since II is tax on indus
try. He said that he had been room
trader all his life. and that under the war
tax he had paid from $1,000 to sli.Ooo
year He knew Of one instance In when
a trader paid 5000 a year as result OF
the state law.
He declared that not only should the
tax rot be increased. but that the present
tax should be repealed. He said tnat
trading had decreased one-half since the
tax vas imposed. and he predicted mat
the city would suffer in It's real estate
values and in it's general business II the
TAX should be increased.
Mr. Wood explained the eject OF the
increased tax upon the arbitrage business
IN which his firm has been engaged Tor
bfty years. II freedom OF trading should
be restricted. he said. the city would lose
great deal OF its financial supremacy.
Mr.. Mcknight. speaking for the Penn
iylvania Company. characterized the
stock transfer tax as an improper tax,
'ibce II was laid upon a business function
IL this tax is Increased" Mr. Mcknight
'sid. every large corporation viii have
70 have an outside transfer Office. III CHI
ago once gets the lead as the leading cx-
ehsnge II will never come back to New
York, because OF tie advantage which
thicsgo has owing to it's central Ioca-
ton"
Ar. Dubois sad that the American
Telephone and Telegraph Company had
come 10 New York from Boston 10 OBJ
tain the advantage Of having active trad