United labor bulletin., 1913-06-21


SS al institution. and that every German
has been immensely proud of 1t as one
Of the glories of the Fatherland.
And now to discover that this great industry
has stopped to the bribing of oficials-a fact ad-
mitted by the Krupp firm. after the charge had
been made In the reichstag-and that 1t had been
supplying French newspapers with material for
war-scare articles. SO as to induce the German
government to buy more Armament from the
Krupps. is more to Germany than scandal 1t
Ii a catastrophe.
The charges made In the reichstag by DR..
Liebknecht. the Socialist deputy. and in the col
umns OF the Vorwaerts. the Socialist newspaper.
1t is q coincidence that It was that newspaper
which ten years ago printed another scandalous
story about the Krupps which caused the death
Hof the then head of the works. Friedrich Alfred
Krupp.
1t was impossible to refute him. because the
minister OF war. Gen. Heerngen, was Obliged
to admit then and there that inquiry was going
on which had already revealed that "one OF the
Krupp officials" had bribed officers 10 reveal GER
tain information The following day the Krupps
Issued n statement In which they admitted that.
their Representatives In Berlin had maintained
friendly relations" with their former comrades
OF the war department for the purpose OF obtain.
ing business information" and had bestowed
small present "on certain under officials"
II was on Friday that Liebknecht exploded his
bomb and forced Won Hecringen to reveal that
secret inquiry and Saturday that the Krupps
made their admission OF bribery. On Sunday the
Norwherta pubUBhed the text OF the instructions
sent by the Deutsehe Munitions und Wanenfabrik
20 its Paris agent TO leave no stone unturned"
10 persuade some popular French newspaper TO
publish a statement that France intended 10 dou-
bic her orders for machine guns. The object was
TO get the German government TO order machine
guns from the Deutsehe Munitions und wanen-
fRbrik
On Tuesday the popular Indignation had risen
so high that Gen Won Heeringen's plea for a sus
pension OF Judgment until his private inquiry had
its work The budget commit
tee OF the reichstag voted to appoint parliamen-
tary commission of inquiry into the scandal This
commission. however. despite the protests OF the
Socialists, was not vested with power to send for
persons and papers.
Although the Krupp works date from 1870 when
Friedrich Krupp established his forge at Essen. 1t
his son. Alfred Krupp. who the real
founder of the Industry Friedrich died practical
iy bankrupt in 1895. leaving little more than the
secret OF his caststeel process TO his son. and II
was 80 years before any striking results were
achieved
1t was in 1910 that Friedrich Krupp purchased
small forge In Essen. where he devoted himself
70 the proble- of manufacturing cast steel. but
j, though the article was put on the market by him
I'm 1915 II commanded but little SALE and the firm
was anything but prosperous. He employed only
three workmen.
Alfred Krupp born April 26. 1912. and at
the time OF his fathers death was only fourteen
years old. His mother carried on the works until
Alfred reached his majority so that twice in the
history of the works have they been managed by
The present head OF the industry is
Bertha Krupp the granddaughter OF the woman
who became it's manager in 1926.
The Krupps had little money that Alfred. on
his fathers death, compelled to leave school
to assist his mother. He displayed a phenomenal
aptitude for the foundry business. and the works
developed with increasing rapidity after his in
huence was felt in their management By 1s4S
the firm had expanded that 122 workmen were
employed.
As late as 1S4S the year In which his mother
relinQuished the sole management OF the works
into his hands. he melted the family plate to pay
his workmen. Today the mighty industry fur
nishes employment to majority Of the workmen
OF three cities and n dozen coal and iron mining
towns. The ships built from II. equipped with
It's STEEL and armed with its cannon, are on all
the seas and wherever steel is used the name OF
Krupp is known. The capital OF the firm now Is
about $50 000.000
II in 1S47 that Krupp scored his first real
success. when he made threepounder muzzle-
loading gun OF cast steel. At the great London
exhibition OF 1851 he exhibited solid hawless
ingot OF cast steel weighing two tons, thus estab
fishing the fact that important firm existed In
Germany capable of turning out samples of excel
lent workmanship. The Essen works were every
where spoken Of and the output watched with
the closest interest. Tho manufacture Of weldlesa
steel tires for railway vehicles another In
vention which followed after.
The making OF heavy ordnance. which has made
the name of these works famous tho world over.
was not then prominent part of tho business.
One OF the FIRST large orders he got for firearms
came four years after the London exhibition. when