Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-08-17
WAR PROF|TEERS
TAKE 800 PER CENT
Government Shows That While
Some Are Fighting Others Are
Robbing the People.
By Associated Press 10 Every Evening

! by ASSOtlattu tftcs W F%NtAS fSfNHihb
| Washington, Aug. 17,-War protltcers
| in 1917 were most numerous IN business
| devoted to food production and dis
| tribution. cotton and wool manutac-
turers and dealers coal mining, iron and
| copper aluminium and other metal pro-
| duction and oil production and distribu-
! ton. according to an actuary analysis of
! income tax returns. In addition, thou
! sands of small concerns III great variety
| of industrial and commercial classlh-
| cations made profits ranging from 100 TO
! 1900 per cent above their normal prOht
! for pre- war wears, which even then were
| considered high
Detailed information on the extent of
war profitecring has been gwen Congress
recently in compliance with a resolution
requesting IT, and the Federal Trade Com
mission Is understood to have obtained
information from the income reports IN
preparation Of its criticism Of the meat
packing industry, In citing certain in
duStrV or commerce claSSihcatIonas as
containing the largest percentage at
prohteers. the treasury has made II clear
that not all individual business IN these
groups have gathered IN swollen earnings.
This Is true particularly Of coal operators.
some Os whom made enormous profits.
often several hundred per cent higher than
good earnings of former wears, while Others
made barely enough to pay justified dlvl-
dends
With few exceptions manufacturers of
clothing and shoes reported blg profits.
This was true of most concerns holding
government contracts many Of which
were let early in the war when the govern
ment felt compelled 10 stimulate pro
ha .,fS
needed by the army Scores Of income re-
ports from suit. shirt, underclothing and
shoe manufacturers showed earnings of
from 80 TO 100 per cent in invested capital
Lumber production, stimulated by the
sudden enormous demand from canton
ments and other government operations
netted forest and saw mill owners Us well
as distributors profits several times above
those Of normal years.
Oil producers made enormous profits,
which they claimed justified by the rapid
depreciation Of property and the extra
financial hazard Of their business.
Despite high cost of labor and other
factors entering into mining the treasury
analysis shows that very few iron, copper
or aluminium mines failed to make
tremendous profits for their owners under
the government policy of stimulating
production Producers OF silver, gold,
platinum and other precious metals
profited to a lesser extent
Automobile and motor truck manu-
featuring was highly rofitable, although
income returns shows that earnings of
different plants We're far from uniform,
some making as high as 30 per cent on
investments, and Others less than 10 per
cent.
Meat packers, -four millers and Gamers
apparently stood at the top Of the list
OF food profit takers. according to income
returns Farmers also made money
heavily last wear, but not enough Of their
returns have been analyzed to justify
general statement of their profits, officials
say.
Profiteering was by no means confined
TO big business interests. Small scale
producers III thousands of cases reported
profits equal to the aggregate Of from five
10 ten year ; earnings before the United
States entered the war
More than 300 clerks of the internal
revenue bureau have been employed in
tabulating income returns for the last
SIX weeks and transmitting these in weekly
or bi-weekly installnents to the Senate
where the reports are now being prepared
for examination by the Senate finance
committee in connection with its consider
alton OF the new revenue bill.
Names Of individual companies are
not reported since these by law must be
considered confidential unless the Prcsi-
dent specifically authorizes publication
of tax returns