New Britain herald., 1916-01-04
DUAL MONARCHY TO
 CRUSH MIDDLEMAN
No Quarter Given to Offenders in
 Austria-Hungary

Correspondence of the Asso. Press).
 Vienna, Dec. 29.-Further measures for the elimination of the "middle- man whose participation in commerce does not add to the value or facilitate the distribution of necessities" are being adopted throughout the Aus Hungarian monarchy. Not alone are new laws for the purpose being enacted but the provisions already made by the civil and military bodies are now being enforced with a rigor that gives no quarter to offenders.
 Laws in force and in the course Of enactment provide that nobody with in Austria and Hungary may buy an article of necessity and then sell it again for the sake of personal gain. This affects transactions in food stuffs especially. When the Euro pean war broke out 1t was found that there were many who wished to profit by it through the 'cornering" of cer- tain supplies. In little time the cost of living went up alarmingly, in creases ranging from 50 to 400 per cent. To curb this tendency the gov ernment itself took such action as it's power and scope permitted. It was
 
 bodies of Austria and Hungary, had to act in the matter. Suitable laws were adopted. and these are now be- ing so amplified as to close the loop holes which various actions at law have disclosed.
 Letter and Spirit.
 A recent ruling in an Austrian su- perior court in this city is of interest, because it shows both the letter and spirit of the "anti-speculation laws which have been adopted.
 In this case three Galician had bought a relatively small quantity of foodstuff, mostly grain At the trial it was shown that the three dealers had shown that the three dealers had sold the articles again in the same town, in one instance wheat had been re-sold to it's original owner. A profit had been made, and slight in crease in the price of food made from the articles in question:, had resulted 1t was proven.
 Offense Under Law.
 The court ruled that under the law this was an offense, because the sale and resale of the articles had been made by the defendants with a profit to which they were not entitled, hav- ing added neither to the value of the nor facilitated their distribu- ton. They had, in fact, found the | judge, rendered distribution more 1 difficult by holding the articles for a certain time. 4..s @:$
 The defense was that the accused 1 had acted within their constitutional 1 tights by buying and selling as they l had done and that they had not ham l oered distribution, because they had ! It all times been ready to sell. But ] he prosecution obliged the defendants | to make the admission that they had | held for a higher price, whereupon 1 the court found that this was now an l because to hold necessities for l the gaining of profit, through the | operation of the law of supply and l demand" was illegal.
 Imprisonment and Fines.
 Heavy penalties of Imprisonment l and fines were imposed upon, the three 1 dealers.
 Austria did not always have such a l law Taking this view of economies | is distinctly a result of the war-the l spirit that nobody shall gain at the l expension of the other when the l other" is likely to be at the front, | his life for his country az, 1 leaving his family in strengthened cir | perhaps.
 To Ideal for profit" has become a very dangerous and unprofitable en- terprise in Austria today. # But the l government, which hitherto l has not been obliged to concern itself l much with this problem is also begin ming to act. Hungary has greater | food resources than Austria, and, for | this reason, spectators have not found l so good a field there. FoC dstuffs have | been so relatively plentif II there that so far, for instance, 1t has not been l thought necessary to regulate the | of bread by means of a l bread card. almost universally used in Austria.
 Nothing in Common.
 Contrary to opinions ger orally held, 1 in interior affairs, Austria and Hun | gary have nothing in common. On | this account, Hungary is not improv- ing her own ''anti-speculation laws"
 Before the Hungarian diet, now in session, is a bill, introduced by the Hungarian minister of justice, accord ing to which no person outside of a trade or industry, or without the spe- cial permission of the ,orities, may buy or sell, for purposes of gaining profit through speculation, any food