New-York tribune., 1920-04-30
Firm Indicted
IAs a Pr0fiteer
I'm Army Goods
~. S. Grand Jury Also Char
~ges Head of Commission
!; Merchants With Making
I Big Gains by High Prices
;;fi'aces Long Jail Term
dealers Profit on Peach
!: Sales Alone Declared
!: TO Amount to $25,5OO

! J. A. Kirsch & Co., commission mer-
f. chants at 105 Hudson Street, and2Jacob
! A. Kirsch, president of the concern,
tgrand jury on thirteen counts, charg
Ting profteering in evaporated peaches
land canned tomatoes purchased from
:the United States army's surplus food
.suppy.
!: Later in the day Kirsch was arrested
on bench warrant issued by Judge
:. John c.. Knox in the United States Dis
! trct Court. He was held in $1,000
!: bail.
!! Kirsch is alleged to have bought 20,-
5000 cases of evaporated peaches and
j: 900 cases of tomatoes from the army
;: last November and to have sold them
!: at an unfair profit.
| The peaches cost Kirsch 13 cents
pound, and the tomatoes in one-gallon
Z cans cost him 33 cents a can. Not long
J. after the purchase Colonel Carson, zone
/: supply officer, reported to the Depart
/. ment of Justice that speculation was
/. being practiced. w. A. Nicollet, spe-
: cial agent, was assigned to investigate.
{ That was before the flying squadron
came to New York to probe alleged vio-
/. lations OF the Lever act.
/. Profit Estimated at S25,500
!: The result Of Nicollet's investigation
! is that twelve Of the counts returned
!! by the grand jury charge that Kirsch
!. sold to various dealers for prices rang
! ing from 16 y cents to 18 cents pound
I the evaporated peaches which he had
/. bought from the army for 13 cents
+. pound.
j The thirteenth count charges that he
j., sold 12,444 cans of tomatoes to Austin
: Nichols & Co., wholesale grocers of
! Brooklyn, for Al cents a can, giving
] him a profit of II cents on each can.
(; Not all the tomato sales have been
! checked, but it is estimated Kirsch
realized about 35 per cent profit on his
I tomato sales. His profit on the evapo-
! rated peaches approXimates, it is said,
!, S25,50O.
Z: This is the first indictment returned
here in which army goods were the
4; subject of profteerng. Kirsch's bail
. Is also $500 higher than any imposed
/. in Manhattan since the flying squadron
+. began to operate.
!. Faces Fine and Imprisonment
: The pepalty for violating that sec
tion of the Lever act Under which the
!. flying squadron operates is $4,000 fine
. or two years imprisonment. Under
the act convicted violator can get
I tWO ediS LUZ SdCu -COuut IN his lQQ1CC-
ment. Krsch's thirteen counts are the
most returned against one person since
: the inception of the profteering cam
(. paign.
/. The flying squadron has recently
varied its procedure by presenting it's
. cases to the grand jury, obtaining an
indictment and then permitting the
United States Marshal to make the
!. arrest. Kirsch's case is the third in
! two DAYS which has been so arranged.
! Martin brennan, special agent of the
+. flying. squadron, arrested Samuel VOL
/. nruth, an auctioneer, yesterday after
/. waiting for him outside his home at
, 152 East 111th Street since Dednesday:
/. Wolmuth is implicated, the Depart
ment of Justice says, with Bernard
4: Berg, grocer and dealer in dried