San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1926-01-08
CHARGE RUBBER
MEN Of j. s.
PROF|TEER
Scion Scathingly Scores
Hoover and Coolidge
Administration.
BY ARTHUR HACHTEN
usiversai Service staff Correspondent


- psiversai Service Staff Correspondent.
= WASHINGTON, d. c., Jan. s.
Charges that current prices for auto
mobile tires are due to profiteering by
american manufacturers and only in
n small degree to the British monopoly
in crude rubber were made in the
House BY Representative Loring NJ.
Black. Democrat, of New York.
While Black was delivering a scorch-
ing attack upon Secretary of Com
nerce Hoover and the administration
Tor turning the telescope on the Brit
-ish East Indies" instead Of tackling
The anthracite strike n neE~- Penn
=sylvania, the House interseS nd for
-sign commerce committee conNrnued its
-fsarins to find a way to break the
British rubber monopoly.
FAVOR COMBINE.
4. L. viles Of New York, general
manager Of the Rubber Association
NJ America, recommended to he COM
mites that Congress permit rubber
-epods manufacturers to combine IN
purehasing their crude rubber.
This Is q big business administra'
don, neither. pure nor simple" shouted
Black in the House "The oio reac-
-ticnary battle cry was Keep politics
out Of business and today We find
biz business in politics with both feet
end all hands.
; sHere are the expanding tire com
psnies sticking the faithful Hoover on
the British lion just when they are
5abeut TO initiate prices. They want
= abb to gouge the public. 80 they
bark at the East India rubber planter.
FIRMS PROFIT.
The British government put on the
Stevenson restriction plan to conserve
thu supply of rubber and TO save their
planters from bankruptcy. 1t was not
done to gouge American manufacturers
for BHsish manufacturers as well were
affected by it.
sLet US see how badly some Ameri-
can manufacturers have suffered By it.
The Goodrich Tire Company in 1920,
before restriction, faced a S24,OOO,OOO
deficit. In 1925, after three years OF
restriction, il made S1,OOO,0O0 in six
months.
"The Firestone Rubber Company in
1921 reported q profit of 81 ,250, 900,
.md in illl25, a profit of Sl3.0OO, 900
ExTORTION EXCUSE.
sThis last blast from Hoover Is
propaganda plus. On the front page
he attacks Great Britain, and on the
financial pages the trade writes sol
emily Of increased prices. On the
cover is the propaganda; on the inside
are the works. The tire companies
intend 10 take from the consumers
what they would otherwise save by tax
reduction.
THE price Of crude rubber has
little to do with the increase except 10
furnish an excuse for extortion. A
tire that cost s23 before restriction
and haL 81 worth Of rubber in IL now
costs $40, with IS worth OF rubber IN
it.
The House investigating COMMITTEES
will cry stop thief at the British
while our own business leaders dc
their pilfering undisturbed.
Congress, instead Of going into the
neighboring state of Pennsylvania tC
force the coal people TO do something
for the consumers, is using long dis
lance telescope 10 investigate the rub
Der plantations Of the East Indies.
THE British restriction ends Feb
ruary 1, and then comes the newly or
xapized New York Rubber Exchange
vich an artificial gambling control
a rubber. That is one trouble with
W-the gambler in commodities, who
MAYS both ends against the middle.
Let Hoover curb him.