New Britain herald., 1927-07-15
 PRICE 0F GASOLINE IS REDUCED HERE Some Stations Bring Cost Down
 to 22 Gents PRODUCERS DENY DROP
Retail Distributors Quick To Fall in Line When Others Precipitate Downward Movement - General
 Price in State Reported 20 Gents.

Although oil companies disclaim any knowledge of a decrease in gasoline prices in New Britain to- day, the fact remains that motorists are purchasing gasoline at two cents gallon lower than they were at this time yesterday at the majority of the stations.
 This same situation Is general throughout the state. according to Arthur Fifoot. executive secretary of has been waging an aggressive cam paign for lower prices for several weeks. MT. Fifoot informed the Herald this afternoon that the price of gasoline had dropped at the retail stations two cents a gallon all over the state The general price in the state he said, now is 20 cents gall lon.
 In. New Britain many places put the two cent drop into effect last evening, bringing the cost to 22 cents, tax included.
 One station after another an nounced a drop of one, two or three cents. Today the situation in New Britain is somewhat confused with the motorist purchasing gas at al- most any price between 20 and 25 cents By this evening or tomorrow, those who are selling the gas ex- pect the market to be stabilized.
 Although the larger oil companies deny any knowledge of a drop or the probability of drop, enc dealer stated this morning that he had been authorized to drop his gas to 21 cents from 24. which he said was one cent under the present market price. Thiseis what is known among gasoline dealers as "a confidential discount"
 This so-called confidential dis count" is felt by. gasoline dealers to be the real cause of the price stam- pede today. According to one dealer a number of the smaller companies have been giving these confidential discounts from their tank wagon prices, with the result that retailers were enabled to sell gasoline cheaper than competitors.
 Secretary Fifoot of the Hartford Automobile club said today it was impossible to tell whether or not there would be another drop throughout the state. Asked what the Connecticut Chamber of Com merce was doing. Mir. Fitoot, as vel. as Secretary Ralph H. Benson of the New Britain Chamber, stated that ttey were unable to learn. Efforts to get into touch with Clark Belden, secretary of the Connectcut Cham Der, were not successful, but it was learned from other souyc $ that the state Chamber is taking little if any active part in forcing ] price re- duction.
 Mir. Benson. who is chairman of Mayor Weld's committee on the To- cal investigation of gasoline prices. said today that he hal no official knowledge of any new developments, although he knew there was drop III pl IIS ct ,lIlaily lOSdl olatloll1 34AS committee has called a conference of gasoline dealers, both retail and wholesale. for Monday forenoon at the Chamber headquarters. At that time the situation will oe discussed.
 Wholesalers were on-committal on the situation this afternoon. At the Standard Oil station it was stated that There Is no reduction that we know of Told that retailers were dropping their prices. the reply came That is just the service stations"
 We know nothing at all about a price reduction" was the statement made at the Gulf Refining Co.,, plant We have no company owned sta- tions and none of our stations have gone down."
 Don't know a thing about price reductions said some one at the Texaco plant" If any stations have reduced the price, they are paying the loss out of their own pockets.
 In the meantime, according to many, a general reduction of both re- tail pumps and tank wagon prices is expected through the entire state. Hartford. Waterbury and'New Hav- en already have announced price de- creases.