El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-07-19
War of Competitors.

so lar as the attorney SeneratS sun
against the Standard Oil company and
its alleged subsidiaries that are do
ing business in Texas Is concerned, the
general public is apathetic in its in
terest. The pending litigation in which
1t is sought by the state to recover
S103, coo, 600 of penalties from the So
called trust and to Gust the defendant
companies from the state is commonly
regarded as phase o. the war of com
petition between the different con-
Germs that are seeking to obtain con-
troll of the refined oil trade of Texas.
It is not charged that Mr.. LoOney has
caused the state to become a party to
this big trade conflict through any
Interior motive. But since the separa-
ton OF the Pierce interests from the
Standard oil company. the competition
between the two concerns has been
very strenuous in this state, with two
independent refiners and distributors
the Texas company and the Gulf Re-
filming company-adding to the inter
est in the commercial game. If the
Pierce interests succeed in having the
Magnolia Petroleum company and the
Navarro Refining company, the two
alleged Standard Oil subsidiaries, GUST
ed from Texas, the former will have
q much clearer field in this state.
Much OIL in Politics.
For several years Democratic poll
tics OF Texas has been more or less
immersed in oil This greasy substance
indirectly brought about the political
y. W.
ley, due to his alleged financial deal
ings with Mr.. Pierce, and the Stand
ard OIL company. The oil trust ques-
ton figured in state campaigns for
many years in this state and was the
determining factor in the public career
of number Of men who occupied
prominent positions in the councils of
the Democratic party. 1t would seem,
however, that the rank and file of that
party as well as the public generally no
longer appears disposed to hearken to
the old rallying cry of "Oil trust" and
for this reason, considerable doubt is
popularity that may come to Mr..
Looney as a result of his prosecutions
of oil companies.
Texas Prices Higher.
In this connection II is interesting
to note that Mr.. Looney's investigation
Of the refined oil trade in Texas shows
that these commodities are sold for
higher prices here than in any other
state. He says:
1.-THE testimony taken in the Mag
nolia-Standard suit clearly establishes
that the price Of refined oil and gaso-
line was much higher in Texas than it
was in any other territory In the
United States. and that the price Of
light crude oil, from which gasoline
and refined oils are manufactured, was
cheaper in Texas than in any oil pro-
ducing territory IN the United States.
1T was clearly shown that gasoline
was and is being sold all through the
east, and as far south as New Orleans.
at from is to IS cents per gallon, while
the people in Texas were mulcted for
q cents per gallon
"The state offered in evidence the
various quotations and prices Of gaso-
line made by the MISUNDERSTANDING
interests since they took the name Of
the Magnolia Petroleum company.
These prices. show that between Feb. /
16. 1912, and Feb. II, 1913. they i'd
vanced the price from u cents per gall
lon. the quoted price on Feb. Is. 1912,
to 20 cents per gallon, the quoted price
on Feb. II, 1913. Later the price went
to 81 cents
IF the price of oil in this country
was controlled by the law of supply and
demand. If only legitimate competition
prevailed, ii would be utterly out of
the question for a profit of nearly 200
percent to be made on an article that
enters so universally into the daily
life of our people as does oil. Such a
profit as shown by the evidence in this
case is possible only when some giant
like combination possesses such a grip
on the situation as to dictate, not only
the price Of oil in a state, but for the
nation as well"