The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-08-19
GASOLINE PRICES
 CAUSE 0F COMMENT
Chamber of Commerce Max ing Investigation-Figures
 From Other Cities Quoted
h gasoline prices

What is the matter with gasoline prices in Birmingham?
 This question is being asked by scores
 of citizens who have awakened to the realization that this city Is paying more per gallon for gasoline than any other city in the southern states, if not the United States.
 Various representatives of the oil com panies operating in Birmingham, the Gulf Refining company, the Standard Oil com pany of Kentucky, the Texas Oil company and the Wofford Oil company, are reti- cent in discussing the high prices of gaso- line in Birmingham.
 With four companies, all of them SUD- posed to be separate and independent, operating in Birmingham and selling thou- sands of gallons of gasoline daily, the public has begun to sit up and take mo-
 tce that the city of Birmingham appears to be discrimnated against.
 That the rumblings of discontent on
 the part of the people have been heard is evidenced by the fact that the Cham
 Der of Commerce has taken up the mat ter of gasoline prices in Birmingham and
 has already sent out numerous letters to different cities throughout the south ask ing for gasoline quotations, and any ex- planation for the present prices. Blanks | Everett, acting general manager stated last night that the Chamber of Com
 merce is going to do all in it's power to get a line on the gasoline situation in Birmingham. If this city is being dis criminated against the Chamber of Com merce is going to take the matter ur | said Mr. Everett. Birmingham has as low railroad rates as many of the cities | in the south who have a lower price on gasoline at the present time"
 BIRMINGHAM PRICE | The retail price for gasoline in Bir- | mingham at the present time is 25 cents per gallon. Some stations sell it at 2t cents per gallon. The wholesale price is ] A cents per gallon. The great majority
 of the filling stations handle gasoline or | basis of 1 cent profit.
 | In Atlanta the price is "A cents retail and 23 cents wholesale. Chattanooga sells gasoline at 20 cents retail and 19 cents wholesale. Nashville's price is 171z cents 1 per gallon wholesale. New Orleans sells l this automobile necessity at 17 cents wholesale and IS cents retail. Indianap- oils, Kansas City and Cleveland are sell | ing gasoline at less than IS cents a gallon retail.
 | In view of these facts it is hard for | the Birmingham citizen to understand why they should be charged more than any other city for gasoline. Dealers and gasoline men refused to be quoted as l to the difference in the price of gasoline or as to the reason for the present prices | Commissioner Barber, when his atten- l ton was called to the fact that some dealers claimed the license in Birming- | ham was too high for the gasoline people | to make money out of their product al as low prices as charged in other states, said that he did not believe the gasoline | companies were overtaxed here and that in his opinion there was no excuse for the prevailing prices.
 Automobile men, many of whom are gasoline experts. stated that gasoline for merly was sold here, not more than three years ago, or, four at the most, at 10 and | F cents per gallon and that the gaso- | line people were glad to get these prices The present specific gravity of the gaso- line sold in Birmingham will not register | more than 65, great deal of it is much | lower. The gasoline sold four years age | was not considered fit to be used in au- tomobile motors, if it did not register i 72 per cent, a minimum and as high as S1 per cent as a maximum