Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-07-14
URGESPUBLICITY
To GUARD ALL
INVESTORS
Quarterly Reports of Big COrpor-
atoms Would Protect Small
Stockholders, Forbes Argues.
By 3. c. FORBES.

BY 3. c. FORBES.
John D. Rockefeller once said;
Next to knowing all about your
own business, the best thing is to
know all about the other fellows
Information means money. In Wall
Street il means millions for those
who can get it ahead Of the other
fellows, the public.
The $50 gold piece which d'ree-
tor 10 handed on leaving each meet
inp is not worth one -hundredth part
OF what he can sometimes make"
on the information gathered at the
board table.
Directors heretofore have regard
cd inside information as a perqui-
site, as an asset which can be turned
into gold for their own pockets.
More Of Americas "Swollen fortunes
have sprung from advance infOrms-
ton than from hard work.
DO tnresfOTS propose to dttOD
directors and other insiders 10 90 on
Indefinitely pocketing money from IN
formation tChich ought not TO be
monopoH2ed. but shared Nth the real
otoners Of the company, the stock
hDldersg Is the 0ne-sided loaded.
dice, taking -cdndVfrom-childreh game
10 be sanctioned for eUcr? Is The
public 10 sit iCith Idle hands and let
insiders tCdr fat lChile ordinary Sc
curitp holders, Kept 90 the ddrE, groU
pOOrerf
As first step, QUARTERLY RE-
PORTS should be insisted upon.
And the punishment for wilfulIy
misleading statements should be i'm
prisonment. not fines, which directors
would either take from the eompany's
treasury or collect a thousand times
over from speculative deals made
possible by their film Tanning.
When efforts were first made to in
dues railroad companies to issue
monthly statements Of earnings, OBJ
jections were raised by many roads.
II could not be done, they said. But
other roads demonstrated that every
obstacle could be overcome, with tho
result that long before the Interest ate
Commerce Commission demanded
monthly returns, nearly every road
voluntarily supplied statements.
II our great transportation sys.
TENS, covering thousands Of miles
and handling millions Of items, can
prepare excellent reports EVERY
MONTH, why can not industrial and
other corporations compile one re-
port EVERY ouARTER1
have hope that tho New York
Exchange will assume leadership in
movement for quarterly reports,
The commission which the Exchange
10 expected to appoint TO study and
suggest reforms is certain to give
favorable attention to this subject.
One Of the most vital problems of
the Exchange is how TO re- establish
itself in public confidence and ss-
teena. Here is one opportunity not
70 De ignored
The Allls-chalmers Co., which had
an unfortunate history under the old
methods and whose security holders
lost heavily, announces that, under
its reorsAnized regime, il will issue
regular quarterly reports. The origin
and purpose Of this concern were
open to suspicion; it was a sort Of
"side-line" for big fellows who eoulo
divert business TO il but who had
not time to attend to it's management
Now. however, il has been placed on
q different footing. Full publicity
would not have fitted in with the old
ways; o-day the company manlfestiy
feels that il has nothing to fear fron
coming into the open.
have in front of mo the circular
and ballot which stockholders of tn,
Vulcan DEFINING Company forceC
the directors to send out on the CUES
ton Of whether quarterly reports bt
instituted. Il is a miserable product
II 10 dated July I, was received b,
most stockholders around the holi
days and allows only until yesterdal
for having votes in the hands OF thu
company. The palpable injustior
was modified after protest. But her
10 another clause even more con
demnatory:
In case you wish the company
TO issue statements only annually
ii will not be necessary for you 10
vote
Votes NOT CAST will be counted
In favor of the secrecy lovina direc
tors! Could anything be NOR
orazen? And then these same gentle
men arrange that they themselves
not some impartial party, shall d.
ill the counting and notify you o
the result" Such tactics Shout,
arouse every stoekholder to demand
the fullest publicity. Directors tina
act thus should be dragged into tn
ven,
The general fight for corporate pub
lefty is only beginning. The Geor
sian means to take an active part il
he campaign. The thousands Of let
ters il and other Hearst publication
receive from vietinized security hold