The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-10-25
GREAT FORTUNES IN
GOVERNMENT DEALS
Spectators Buy Goods at
Low Prices and Make
Enormous Profits
GOVERNMENT STILL
BUYING SUPPLIES

Great stocks OF NeceSSaTleS F1elu HI
Army Supply Bases Unable to
Properly Store Goods and Heavy
Losses Result-SOme Examples.
NEW YORK, Oct 25.-It is al
legged that the war department has sold
large stocks of supplies at great loss
to the government and prOfteers have
resold the goods at tremendous profits,
1000 per cent in some instances.
Some idea of the great profits reaped
by favored ones may be obtained from
a transaction by which large concern
of this city, according to admissions made
by it's own employees, purchased 300
600 raincoats from the government at
p cents each and resold them to chain
raincoat stores here at ten times that
amount, or $3.50 each, thus making a
profit of $675,0 900, or 900 per cent on
its investment. And this same concern
had sold previously these same raincoats
to the government at a good profit over
and above the cost of manufacture.
This same concern also is said to have
bought back from the government 1,0OO,-
600 yards of olive drab shifting at a
loss to the government of from II to
II cents a yard, or from $4,000 to
$4,000 on the whole lot In trade
gossip it is said that the head of this
OF the presidents cabinet that he can
walk into his Office in Washington at
any time without knocking"
Another instance along this line is
that of a former lieutenant in the army
supply base at Fifty-ninth street and
First avenue, Brooklyn, and promptly
went into business as a dealer in army
surplus goods. He is said on good au-
| thOrity to have purchased 100000 knit
ted neck muffiers at 30 cents each, al
though the price paid for them by the
government was $3.50 each. From this
same base 2,75000 packages Of candy
were sold to a local candy broker al
one cent each, and resOld by him to deal
ers at profit equal to many times his
investment.
Despite the fact that innumerablc in.
stances of this kind are reported, it is
by no means easy to get goods out oil
the army bases at such rates, and one
| must stand in well to enter into any
negotiations. An amazing thing about
it all is that many of these brokers put
no cash Mt all into the deal. They
| merely purchase the goods upon condi
ton that they are to pay for it wher
they have it carried away. Then they
| resell it to others at enormous profits
and these others pay the dealer before
| he pays the government. Thus, many
men have CLEANED a rich harvest with
no investment at all and no assets tC
begin with other than the necessary in
fuence.
But this kind of wholesale waste is
! but one phase of the situation which
exists under supervision of the war de
| partment today. Instances are reported
! where a large fortune in materials o
! all sorts and descriptions is being al
| lowed to lay in idleneSs in army store
| houses throughout the country.
! In the three huge buildings at the army
! supply base in Brooklyn there are al
| the present time acres upon acres OF
! building materials that never will bC
! used by the army and which, if Offered
at public sale, would be Of considerable
I help in the present housing crisis
, There are plumbers supplies in guam
! titles altogether too large for the need,
| Of the present army.
There are in this same warehouse
| paints and Varnshes enough to supply
! all of the interior decorators in this city
| and enough surplus kegs of nails to sup
| ply the whole building trade There arr
tools which cannot be purchased on thu
/ market and of which workingmen are il
/ great need
Electric supplies of every sort are ly
| ing about in the greatest abundance anC
! there is little or no likelihood. according
I to men at the base, of the government
| having any use for the greater part O
! them. There are ladders, hammers. CHS
! els, wrenchcs and every kind of article