New-York tribune., 1919-04-05
L. S. to Revise
Steel Price if
Need Is Shown
Intention TO SSStand Pat''
OIL Uniform Scale Hines
Rejected Is Denied by
Industrial Board Head
Will Confer Next Week
Entire Policy of Bureau Is
To Be Rcconsidered, to
Reconcile Varying Views

RecOHclIc varying views
WASHINGTON, April 4.--The price
stabilizing effort has become SO in
yolved that review of the progress
of events to date is necessary to un
derstand the present situation. The
successive steps have been as follows:
7 Secretary Glass called meet
ing of executive officers to
consider accelcrating government
buying in order to stimulate private
buying. His idea was that an effort
should be made to persuade produc-
ers of basic commodities to make
prices so low that they would be
very attractive to government pur-
chasing agents. He contemplated no
price fixing or even stabilizing.
. Secretary Redticld, of the De-
partment of Commerce then
took up the carrying out of the idea,
first getting the Presidents approval.
He went further than Secretary
Glass and conceived the idea of US
ing government prices as a stable
guide for private buyers, and con-
sidered that this was the main pur-
pose in view.
Industrial Board Created
2 Acting on this understanding,
Secretary Rcdhcid consti-
tuted the industrial board, which
shares his views Of the purpose to
be achieved.
A The board first took up steel
and iron prices. having it in
mind, not to make the lowest pos
sible prices for the government but
prices that should be satisfactory
to the government and low enough
to meet the demand for reduced
prices.
= The board, after consultation
with the steel industry, is
sued a price LIST. This was assumed
to be satisfactory to government
buyers.
e 1t then developed that the
steel and iron prices were not
sanctioned by the railway administra-
ton. The board admits that the ad-
ministration's member of the board
did agree to all the others. He saws
he agreed to nothing. Director Gen
eral Hines refused to be bound by
prices which he had not sanctioned.
= Then on last Wednesday, a
- meeting Of Cabinet officers
and other executive heads was held
in Secretary Glass's office to discuss
the situation created by the diffcr-
ences in regard to steel and iron
prices and their manner of promulga-
tion. After long debate the whole
matter was recommItted to the in
dustrial board, as Mr.. Glass states;
or, as Chairman Peek of the board
contends, to the board for confer
ence with the Railway Administra-
tion. According to Secretary Glass's
statement the meeting intended that
the board should reconsider it's whole
purpose. According to Chairman
Peck of the board it merely in
tended that it should seek to settle
the steel and iron dispute with the
railway administration.
Conference Scheduled To-day
9 A conference is to be held to-
morrow between the board
and the Railway Administration to
reconsider the iron and steel prices,
but as Director General Hines agrees
with Secretary Glass as to the linn
tied functions of the board, the whole
Plan Of operations of the board will
likely be discussed.
q Coal prices were early taken
up by the board but no con
clusion was reached, as Mr.. Hines
has taken a definite stand agains,
any interference with his purchasing
methods in regard to this commodity
He considers that the board, instead
OF being mere price mtdiator, has
in reality become price fixing board
and is running counter to the anti
trust law.
Chairman Peek to-day issued tt
following statement, the latest de
velopment in the controversy arisin
from the refusal of the railroad az
ministration to accept the board
prices on the ground that they we,
ooo high:
81 never have said nor intimate
that the Industrial Board would stan
pat on the prices formulated with tt
steel industry, no matter what objc
tions were brought by other depar
ments. Shown good and sufficiel
reason for doing so, the board will r.
consider. With wisdom it could pu
sue no other course"
Conference Delayed
Conferences which we're to ha,
started to-day between the board ar
representatives of Director Gener
Hines were delayed because of abscnt
from Washington of one of the railros
administrations representatives, but
is considered certain that an effort wi
begin next week to reach an agrecmer
The entire policy of the board all
IS to undergo reconsideration, the pri>
clpal question being whether pric,
shall continue to be announced as
basis for public purchases or only
the basis on which the govcrnme1
will do its buying. A number Of of
cials object to the former course
bordering on illegal price fixing.
Acceptance Of the uniform prc
was put squarcly up to tho Navy d
partment to-day when bids we
opened for 10000 tons of structur
steel. All the bids were found to
based on the prices announced by IL
Industrial Board. Department officia
declare the principle Of uniform pric
had neither been accepted nor rcjcctc
Shipping Board Accepts Prices
The Shipping Board reiterated it's a
ccptancc OF the new steel prices as
basis for future contracts, but it W
suggested that yards have bought ste
for many months ahead and few nj
cnntrncfa upro hcinr lot ODipiop w