The evening world., 1920-11-15
HORT OF COAL,
.CITY SHIVERS IN
| FIRST COLD SNAP
iouging Spectators Buy and
Resell Limited Supply
With Huge Profits.
ON TO-DAY
Ipathy From Operator to Re-
taller Causes Widespread
Suffering.
Health Commlssloner Copeland has

Health Commissioner Copeland has
He'd a conference to-day with Spe-
al Deputy Attorney General Speer
F. Birmingham, Chairman Of the
bal Producers Emergency Commit
b, and representatives OF various
bal producing agencies.
Apathy on the part of coal opera
tors, wholesalers, jobbers, commits
sion buyers and retailers has brought
general suffering 10 the city with the
hrst cold snap. Those who have no
coal have been forced to purchase
1ectric and gas heaters and still
nffer from the winter blasts. Those
rho have secured coal have been
obliged to pay exorbitant prices.
The shortage begun last summer
because Of the freight car shortage
has continued because OF coal pri-
prity orders to the Northwestern and
Middle Western States.
What coal has been transported
Into New York City. and into the
Dast has been bought and resold
many times before 1t has eventu-
ally found its way to the bins Of con-
sumers. Spectators have been reap
ing a harvest. Practically all of the
coal shipments into the city have
been 'gobbled up" by manufacturers
and public utility companies.
The small householder and apart
snt house keeper are the ones who
90 cot IN mi ~ 80
supply Of fuel. Hundreds Of thou
sands of families are affected by the
4. situation, and thousands of letters are
pouring into the offices of the Fed
eral. State and city departments and
70 the newspapers, which are seeking
to relieve the situation.
Many Anvestigations into the crisis
were begun during the past week. On
wednesday a committee of the Whole
sale Coal Trade Association, another
investigating body, Will report It's
findings at a meeting in the whitehall
Club. 1t is expected that resolutions
will be offered limiting the wholesale
profit in coal transactions to the ex-
ceedingly small margin of 10 per
cent, and that wholesalers will be re-
gtricted to not more than, two sales OF
coal shipments between the mine and
the retailer.
This Is practically the same action
taken some months ago by the sugar
brokers and traders of this city VINO
"troEe out" the illegitimate spectators
who fiocked TO trade in sugar to get
some of the easy money aIA who are
now believed to be a substantial por
ton of tho group who have been
profteering on the present coal short
age.
The present shortage is OF hard coal
used by small consumers for heating
purposes. Soft coal, used by many in
dustries and by all OF the public util-
ity companies here, is not 80 difficult
to obtain. This Is because soft Goa
united in eXerting pressure
Ipon the bituminous operators to halt
"A the excessive speculation of a com
modify they needed to produce Wha'
they manufacture.
Preliminary steps to alleviate the
anthracite coal shortage were taker
last Friday when Mr., Birmingham
who is President OF the Delaware
I.ackawanna and Western Coal Com.
pany, called a meeting to reconvent
the Wartime Coal Distribution Com.
mittee for New York.
on Wednesday and Thursday MT
Birmingham expects shipments OF
hard coal to reach New York from
the mines. This coal will be distrib-
nted to be sold in the poorer Sec
tons of the city to relieve the i'm.
mediate situation. Mr.. Birmingham
d unable TO predict or even estimate
|the price at which this coal is to bC
old in lots of five tons and less.