The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1918-07-19
CRIMINAL ACTS
OF PROFIIEERS

WASHINGTON, July G.-In a SEN
sational report submitted to the
president Of the senate the federal
trade commission caarged that unfair
and eXtortionate profits were being
/ made by many of the great indus
tries vital to the nations war pro-
gram, and recommended that con-
gress take steps to right the situa-
tion, as far as possible, by imposing
heavy war excess profits taxes. The
commission, in taking the latter po-
sition, stated that all of it's findings
supported the utterances Of Presi-
dent Wilson, who in his address to
Congress on May 27 said
"The profiteering that cannot be
got at by the restraints of conscience
and love of country can be got at
by taxation. There is soch profiteer-
ing now, and the information in re-
gard to it is available and indsput-
able"
In backing up this assertion by the
president, the trade commission, in
its report, says:
"The commission has reason to
know that profiteering exists. Much
! of it is due to advantages taken of
the necessities of the times, as evi-
denced in the war pressure for heavy
production. Some of it is attribut-
able to inordinGte greed and bare
faced fraud"
The report declares unprecedented
profits are shown in a survey of the
backing industry. In this connec~
ton it is said:
Five meat packers, Armour. Swift
Morris. Wilson and Cudahy, and their
subsidiary and affiliated companies,
have nonoDolistic control of the
meat industry and are reaching out
for like domination in other prod
ucts. Their manipulations of the
market embi ace every device that
is useful to them without regard to
law.
"Tho;r reward, expressed in terms
of profit reveals that four of these
concerns have pocketed in 19l5-1916-
1917 %140,000.00O However deli
cate definition is framed for prof
teering' these packers have preyed
upon the people unconscionably."
Armour & Co., it is pointed out,
iai2ed its $4,000 0OC capital stock to
$1C0, 100000 in 1916 without receiv-
ing a dollar of cash.
Armour and Comrany's profits or
It's subsidiary leather business are
shown by two checks to J. Ogden
Armour-one for $9t5,787, the other
for $202, 1862 - representing divi-
dends on his investments in leather
companies.
Illustrating again the profits of
the packers, the report shows that
while their business increased only
$50 per cent in the ''war time" per-
iod, their profits increased to 400
per cent, or two and one-haf times
the sales.
In its investigation of the zinc in
dustry the commission found that of
ficers of the American Metal COM
pany, limited of New York, prob
ably take the prize for high salar-
es. Following are the salaries and
extras paid the leading officials
of that colpoi alton:
B. Hochschild, chairman, board of
directors, $179,663.36. C. M. Loeb,
president, 1864 326.73. Otto Suss-
man, vice president 1921 $1,000. J.
Loeb, vice president, $147,930.39
Sol Roos, manager, St. Louis office,
$148,530.G9 M. Schott, manager,
Denver office, $136, 553.12.
These salaries and extras" ag-
gregating more than $1,000,000,
were charged in the expense &C
count" the report states.
The report also takes a whack at
certain features of the governments
price-fixing policies. With regard to
steel, it says that while the market
was prevented from running away"
by price fixing still the stronger
factors in the industry were enriched
by profits which are without pre-
cedent.
The net income of the United
States Steel corporation in 1912
was $77075,217 while in 1917 it
reached the unheard of figures of
$47S, 204,343.
The same is true, the report says,