Evening star., 1934-08-23
BOOTLEG GASOLINE
PROBE IS BEGUN
Fuel Declared Struggled Into
Virginia in Price Cut
War.

Washington's current gasoline price
war broadened today to take in two
cooperative efforts on the part of code
authorities and tax authorities of vir-
ginia, Maryland and the District to
put an end to situation that all
parties describe as. disastrous" y
This afternoon the licensed and well
known suppliers Of gasoline were to
meet with the District Of Columbia
Petroleum Committee to take up the
question of bootleg" gasoline.
Tentative arrangements were made
to have tax authorities of all three
jurisdictions meet here Monday to
take up the charges of tax evasion
and tax delinquency on the part of
the so-called third grade" dealers
who are still selling their motor fuel
at 10 cents, or .09 cent below cost.
Gasoline Declared Struggled.
G. w. Boyer, secretary of the Dis
trict of Columbia Code Committee,
said it was learned that gasoline sup
posedly sold in the District, where the
Federal and local tax is cents per
gallon, had been smuggled to Virginia
and sold there, where the tax is
higher, and the difference is split be-
tween the retailers involved.
The question of the source of supply
was to be taken up by the well known
dealers at the conference today.
Boyer said there is a well grounded
belief that much of the gas being sold
at the cut-rate price actually is boot
legged and probably unaccounted for
at any place.
Charles A. Russell, assistant District
tax assessor In charge of gasoline tax
payments, said today there is Every
little" gasoline "bootlegging" here. In
fact, he said, he has had not one
complaint within the last six months
and that with his inspectors watching
the main highways closely not single
smuggler has been found
Russell also said there are only
five delinquent tax cases in the Dis
trict, one of which is for $643, which
was for June and was due to be paid
in July. Another is a company now
out Of business, in arrears $9,373,
which Judge John P. Mcmahon sug-
gested should be permitted to pay In
monthly installments. A suit is pend
ing against the company now.
The other three are for back taxes,
although the companies involved are
not in arrears in current collections.
The sums owed, all dating back close
to year ahd half are 1884, SI5,341
and $32,594.
Meanwhile, despite the activities of
the Code Committee here to restore
peace among the retailers, the stand
ard brand dealers continued to hold
their price to IL cents, 2 cents above
the cut-price dealers
So unconcerned was one of the
leaders of the cut-price faction that
he left his place Of business to spend
the day fishing with a group of
friends.
L. S. Scott, chairman Of the local
committee. admitted the code author
ity was unable to restore to normal
prices at present. He also said the
chain stations and the independent
dealers handling well-known brands
will continue to stand together, no
matter what price the cut-rate dealers
reach.
Scott also accused some of the
dealers of violating health regula- |
lions by selling tetraethyl gasoline |
without publicly posting a notice to |
that effect. He said he had called |
upon District health officials for an |
Investigation.
Protest Made to Ickes.
From another front, the Service
Station Institute, through F. G. Klock,
director, protested to Sec
retary Ickes, oil administrator, that
MS organization could no longer COM
ply with the petroleum code under
.he cut-price conditions.
"The plight of the independent
iealer and the small jobber in WASH
ngton is directly traceable to your
allure to enforce Article v, rule 4,
which prohibits the selling of oil
products below cost" Klock's letter
% Ickes said. You have repeatedly
permitted the quasi-criminal major
TO defy the Government
n its effort to secure cost figures
If the operation of their stations,
hereby enabling them TO bleed the
mall business man by charging their