South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1922-05-23
By MILTON BRONNER


BERLIN. May 22-When the
Hohenzollerns could put into the
common pot the kingdom Of Prussia
over which they ruled. To this were
ADDED the Kingdoms OF Bavaria and
Wurtemburg the Duchy OF Baden
and dozens OF little principalities all
ruled over by kings. dukes and
princes Then the Hohenzollern
king became German emperor.
Hugo SHINES. Germanys undis-
puted business emperor. started be-
tore the war with two Kingdoms
the kingdom Of coal and the king
dom OF iron And 10 this he has
s-nce added various duchies and
principallties In commodities over
which no others but himself is ruler
lie grasPed early in his business
career what the nations only fully
learned after the great war started
all its conveniences. all its COM
forts are q pyramid Of which the
base is coal. Place iron on top OF
the coal and YOU at once have al
most all the ueedful.
So SHINES began with coal. He
secured control of many Of the best
coal mines in the rich Ruhr like
his grandfather he continued the
building Of tugs and barges TO con
vey his own coal up and down the
rivers 10 his own coal yards.
He became the ruling power in
the Rhenish Westphalian Coal Syn
dictate which in its great brick pail
ace at Essen regulates the prOduc-
/ ton price and market Of practical
/ y all the coal dug in the Rhineland
and Westphalia And II is done
} openly. The coal barons don't have
70 dodge the law 10 accomplish their
purpose.
Ready for Chance.
Having fortified himself in the
coal business SHINES long before
the war was in position for his
next strategic move which was a
/ big invasion OF the iron and steel
trade. He loaded his heavy guns
with money and with coal.
There is this 20 be said for Stin-
nes-he goes forward not by crush
ing or wrecking opponents He is
a constructor. He takes sick bust
nesses and cures them OF what ails
I them. He takes well businesses ana
makes them bigger. He likes 10
make two mills produce where only
| one did before. That gives more
work 10 Germans and enriches both
| Germany and SHINES
Back in the nineties a weak blast
furnace corporation in Luxembourg
and another in Bochum. Germany.
were united in one organization
which was just as weak IL lost
money for it's stockh olders.
Then in 1901 SHINES came into
the field. He formed the German
Luxembourg Mining and Smelling
Corporation with a capital Of only
one million marks He took over
the weak combination just mention
/ ed. In less than a year the new con-
| Germ increased its capital 70 25 mill
lions and in 1910 10 60 million
/ marks
Under SHINES leadership II
bought some stock in biz coal min
! ing companies in the Saqr and
Mosselle valleys and thus assured a
cheap coal supply Then it gobbleG
! up a. Dortmund company and rock
eted its capital 10 100 million marks
SHINES was showing himself the
German Napoleon Of industrial
| finance. But 1t was sound finance.
II was based upon actual posses
sions, not water Ia American
trusts. Vast mills in Bochum. bort
mund Mulheim and Emden. coal
mines. iron mines. coke ovens. 40
\ 600 busy workmen, all told a very
real story Of big business.
The concern controlled five raillion
tons Of coal and 1900. 900 tons OF
J coke per annum. TO say nothing Of
ammonia, benzol and coal tar prod
ucts It made not only pig iron.
cast iron and steel but finished prod
ucts like freight cars. In other mills
il mede machinery.
Ii seemed SHINES was at the ze-
: Nth Of his career But he had not
yet 6een really tested. The wal
came and with il the bitter after.
math of crushing defeat for Ger
many Albert Ballin. creator of the
+ Hamburg American steamship lines
seeing his great business destroyed
/ didn't have the heart 10 go on. II
was said he killed himself But
SHINES was OF tougher metal. See
I ing his greatest work cut into
pieces by the allied victory. he as
tonished all Germany by wrestling
greater achievement out of disaster
War Spurrcd Him.
No German business was harder
hit than bis German Luxembourg
/ When Lorraine went back TO Franc,
and Luxembourg was freed from
German influence SHINES company
lost 60 percent Of its raw material
/ iron ore and coal For an ordj-
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