New-York tribune., 1922-09-06
| Senate Calls I'm
for
Coal " ote Today
Members From the Mining
States Lead Sharp Oppo-
sition to Climmins Anti
Profiteering M ASSURE
Kellogg Warns Operators
Effort 10 .NulIify Curb May
Result i'm More Drastic
Legislation, He Declares

W
WASHINGTON, Sept. BIN the ex-
pectation that the Cummins coal bill,
intended TO cheek profiteering, will be
voted on tomorrow, Senate leaders to-
day sent out wires TO absent Senators
calling them back to Washington.
Prolonged debate over the bill con
sumed the entire afternoon. Opposi-
ton continued to be manifested Late
this afternoon Senator Sutherland, of
West Virginia, with the backing of
Senator Reed, the new member from
Pennsylvania, offered an amendment
intended to prevent the powers Of the
Interstate Commerce Commission as
TO priorities and embargoes being ap-
piled IN cases where operators or
others handling coal in interstate com
merce have contracts. Senator Cum
Minis held that this would nullify COM
pletely the effects of the proposed law.
Senator Kellogg, Senator Lenroot and
Senator Nelson took the same view.
would turn the coal business of the
country over to lot Of profiteers that
make contracts"
Warns of Drastic Check
Senator Kellogg warned the coal op~
orators that if they tried to get legis-
lation of the kind embodied in the
to get something more drastic. He
stressed the imperative need of action
to prevent profiteering. He referred
to the shortage of coal and depletion
of the reserves, and declared that in
many cases railroads and public utili-
ties fare close to being shut down."
lowing to the exhaustion of the coal
surplus of the country and the short
age" said Senator Kellogg, "if the rail
roads could move the normal or even
the peak of coal per month, priority
orders would be necessary for those in
dustries that are absolutely necessary
to the life of the people, transporta-
ton, public utilities and public insti-
tutions.
"Unless some measures, drastic mea-
sures, are taken, the want of trans
portation will make the price soar to
unreasonable heights just as much as
the want of production.
Utilities in Serious Situation
"This is crisis" continued Senator
Kellogg. "Unless something is done
by priority orders and TO maintain
ing to lose hundreds of millions of
dollars. The public utility companies
cannot pay the prices Of coal now
being asked in this country"
Senator Kellogg referred to the con-
ferences between Secretary Hoover
and the soft coal operators and said
70 per cent of the operators had agreed
to the prices approved by Mr.. Hoover
and generally had kept the agreement.
Thirty per cent, he added, refused to
do it, and as a result coal had scared
$6 to So at the mine and other oper-
ators were breaking away from the
agreement.
The Senator pictured consumers and
users of coal bidding against each
other for it, in view Of the shortage,
with prices rising to unreasonable
heights as the result.
Price Doubled Is Charge
Senator Cummins read telegram
from the Iowa City Gas Company, in
his state, protesting because it was
charged $4.50 at the mine by an Illinois
company for soft coal screenings,
which before the war were 80 cents
a ton and last year were $2.25 The
telegram said the utility companies
could not stand such excessive prices.
Senator King condemned SPECTATORS
who are buying up coal. He declared
the doors Of the penitentiary ought to
be opened for "that kind of thieves"
and indicated he would offer bill to
that end.
Senator Reed, of Missouri, offered an
amendment to the bill, the effect of
which would be to require every coal
operator handling coal in interstate
commerce, and also every wholesaler
and jobber receiving coal in interstate
commerce, to make report every fif-
teen days to the Secretary Of Com
ceived. Senator Reed urged this as
calculated to afford protection to con-
sumers.