The Washington times., 1924-04-08
FIRMS
TAPPING j. s.
American Resources Exploited
RuthIessIy While Alien
Fields Are Reserved.
Continued from First Page.)

Continued from First Pagel
continental area of the United
States.
Counting purely American inter-
ests, the monster Royal Dutch
Shell, AngloP Persian, De Rothschild
combination, by some authorities,
claimed to control upwards of 80
per cent of the worlds known oil
reserves, probably has the biggest
holdings, aside from the Standard
OH group, in the United States.
INTEREST IN U. s. COMPANIES.
Through its two holding com.
panies. the Shell Union Petroleum
Corporation of Delaware, and the
Asiatic Petroleum Company, Ltd,
Of Delaware, the Dutch.Shell
I group alone controls fifty-fOur
American corporations, having
gross assets at the time of their
absorption, probably much en-.
HANGED since, of 1894, 800. 40l, and
q minority interest Of $37 ,294, 692
In still another company.
MELLON COMPANY RUNNER-UP.
Probably the nearest rival to the
Dutch-Shell as runner-up for Stand
ard Oil among American companies,
II their foreign interests be segre-
gated, is Secretary of the Treasury
Melons Gulf OIL Corporation, which
on December 81, 1922, reported
gross assets of $348, 1913, 765, though
the Sinclair Consolidated, with it's
great foreign holdings included, re-.
ported assets of 9,229,452. The
Texas company, the only other near
rival, including it's foreign hold.
ings, on the same date reported
assets totaling $345,535,024.
Holdings in U. s.
The Dutch Shells $362.10l. 1873
holding, while slightly less than
that reported by Sinclair, is ex.
ciusively within the boundaries of
the United States, it's American
companies shown on the chart as
operating in Mexico not being in.
Guided in this total. Were Dutch.
Shells Mexican companies included.
the total would be over $4OO. 900 900
SURPRISING the Sinclair company
by $21,O00,000. Also there have
been excluded several American com.
panles strongly suspected Of being
animated with Dutch.Shell but with
the record not entirely clear.
Further, the latest available re.
ports on some of the Dutch. Shall
companies that are included arE
very old.
One. reported last in 1919 st
$l'ZvO'OOO, is known to the. writer
70 De worth nearer ten millions
now, but IL rated here at the lowe.
Official figure. Probably MANY Of
the properties have similarly en-.
nanced in value. In Dutch. She'll
companies depreciation Is taken
care of by ample reserves.
Other Factors Important.
Nor is the extent of the Dutch.
shell interests in this county ado.
quately shown by the number mr.
vaIuation of its properties, There
1urther must be considered the
potential value Of its undeve;onad
holdings, scattered over prime terri.
tory IN the midcontinent and C,au.
Iornla fields, and its purchases Of
crude oil, much under long.terYn
contracts, from other American nro.
ouclng companies. Several Of ita
SUBSIDIARIES are large purchasers of
crude petroleum. Ali of the re.
fineries except the Simplex, which
simply collects royalties on refining
patents, are purchasers Of crude ojI
both in the open market and under
contract. The Asiatic COMPANIES of
Delaware and New York, are bie
buyers of petroleum products for
export to Europe, the latter being
purely a purchasing concern.
The Shell Company Of California.
one Of the big subsidiaries, has a AZ.
600 barrel refinery on the coast. The
Roxana Petroleum Corporation. the
second biggest subsidiary, has a 90
600 barrel refinery in Illinois. while
the New Orleans Refinery COMPANY
has a similar capacity in Louisiana.
Besides. there were two big Cracking
plants in Oklahoma in 1922. when
the Shell-Union reported plans for
great engagements were under wav.
which by now probably have been
completed.
Big Refining Capacity.
The combines refinery canacitv
in 1929 was 10000 barrels in excess
Of it's daily production, SO its pur.
chases must have been large, even
then.
But the Dutch.Shell interests II,
the United States, though they are
the biggest Of any single foreign
company, are scarcely more than a
third Of the combined total of foreign
interests operating and purchasing
here, and, through American sub.
salaries, operating in Mexico, Cen.
trial and South America and else.
where, whose stories must be told at
another time. Often their trails will
DC found intermingling with these
nf the Dutch Shell nnAnn,,n