Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-08-26
HUNS PLOTTING FOR
AFTER-WAR TRADE
Government Bares Big Conspiracy
to Again Monopolize Dye
Business.

New York. Aug. % Five officials o
the Bayer Company. one OF the German
owned chemical firms taken over by A.
Mitchell Palmer, the alien property Gus
todlan were arrested bv government
agents Yesterday after discovery OF what
the government officials describe as n
conspiracy 10 divert a large proportion 0f
the future profits Of the company into
German hands and to retain n strong
footing in the chemical industry IN this
country for the purpose of enabling Ger
manv 10 rc-cstabish her dye and drug in-
tercats in the United States after the war.
Tho Bavcr Company, which has the
largest drug and chemical plant IN this
country at Rensselaer,. n Y, had been
earning money at the rate Of 81 500 000
a year before it was taken over by the
alien property custodian. / It's principal
owners were ~ Germany, the chief of
them being Herr Duisberg. General di-
rector Of the Baycr Company in Ger
many and the head Of the German war
trade board
After the company had been taken
over by the government, It was found
that it was bound bv a peculiar contract
70 transact business with "A concern in
Providence, II l.. IN such way that
the Providence company would profit
enormously. Had Custodian Palmer &C
cCpted the contract as bona iide and
followed it's terms, the Bayer Company
would have purchased the output of the
Providence concern at prices which
would have given the Providence com
pany a profit Of S600.Wn vear The
Providence concern IS 4 dummy
MONEY GoING INro GERMAN HANDS
This profit until the scheme was de-
tcctcd. was going into the hands Of the
Germans who had formerly controlled
the Baycr Company, and they were
using il to buy land on the New Jersey
waterfront and to make other arrange
ments To rehablIt9te the German chem
zeal industry in this country under the
guise Of American ownership.
Several American citizens, including a
prominent lawyer. whose case IS in the
hands Of the Department Of Justice. are
said by MIR Palmer to have eo-operated In
the scheme to retain a bridgehead for an
attack Of German commercial interests
on the chemical industry of this country
after the war
The men under arrest are Herman {.
A. Seedebohm, director and secretary
of the Bayer Company. DIR. Il. J. Pabst,
manager of the New York and southern
sales department; A. Reiser. office man
ager OF the Williams X Crowell Color
Company, Inc, of Providence, r. l.;
DR. Albert Segin. chief of the pharma-
ceutIcal department of the Bayer Com
pany. and DR. r. Hutz, former di-
rector Of the Baver Company, who was
taken INTO custody in Boston.
The men arrested in tins city were
locked up in separate jails IN Nlanhat-
tan and Brooklyn to prevent any possi-
bilitv Of communication between them,
and are being held for the time as dan
gerous aliens.
SMALLER CONCERN BOUGHT OUT.
The corporation at Providence which,
according to government officials, was
being used to pump profits from the
Bayer Company, while under govern
ment control, IS the Williams Il Crowell
Color Company, Inc. Just before the
Baver concern was taken over, It's Of
hcials, anticipating Government action,
il is alleged, secretly obtained control
Of the Providence company, compara-
lively small concern, which they pur-
chased for 100000
The contract which ii Is charged, was
to pour huge unearned profits
INTO the treasury of the small concern
bound the Bayer Company to purchase
its entire output of sulphuric acid dyes
which are being used to dye cloth for
of American soldiers.
After the purchase of the Providence
concern, a new company was organized
in this city, using the same name except
that Inc was added A dummy
directorate of American citizens, ac-
cordlng TO the charges, was formed, and
they were curbed from possible partici-
patton IN the excess profits by a section
Of the bylaws, limiting dividends TO 10
per cent on the capital of $4,000 Con-
5equently the concern, which has been
earning $4,000 a month and might soon
have been earning more, could not pay
out more than $40, 900 year to stock
holders.
UNMAsKED BoCHE TRICK.
Suspicion, according to government
was originally directed at the
Bayer Company, because the directors
last January voluntarily asked MIR
Palmer to take over the property, be-
cause of its alien ownership, The of
hcials of the company seemed TO be
overzealous IN their desire to cooperate
with the government, il was stated, and
this gave the impression that they were
anxious to have the transfer effected
without II being preceded by searching
Of the books aud affairs of
the concern.
mo