Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-11-01
BethIehem's Backlog
Exceeds Billion as
Profits Run High
Directors Order Dividend
Or $3.50, Bringing Years
Total Payments to S.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
NEW YORK. Nov. HEAVY par
ticipation by Bethlehem Steel Corp.
in the national rearmament pro-
gram was shown yesterday in COM
pany announcement untitled orders
at the end of September exceeded
s1,00o,00O,0 900 and the quarterly earn
ings were the second bset in its
history.
Directors declared a dividend of
$3.50 a share, bringing the years
payments to date to SIS, compared
with $3.50 in all of 1899.
Profits in the September quarter
equaled 1888 a share, against S307
in the June quarter and s1.10 d
year ago.
Eugene G. Grace, chairman, an
nounced that the untitled orders on
hand as of September 80 totaled
slips, 081 $50, largely accounted for
by our participation in the naval
building program"
At the end of June. the backlog
was $685. .487. only slightly larger
than a year ago.
Civilian Orders About Same.
"Orders for steel other than for
naval building" said Mr.. Grace, ARE
within 1000 tons of the same amount
as were on hand at the end of the
previous quarter.
In the first nine months of this
year we have spent $4,000 900 of
our own money for plant extension
and have planned S21,00OOOO of
plant extension expenditures for the
next six to eight months. This in
cludes $4,000, 900 for plants purely
for war purposes.
I'VE also are spending for the
Government S53,000.0OO for Govern
ment-oWned facilities. principally
for the extension of shipyards and
heavy castings.
This makes the company's World
War activities, both in plant eXpan-
sion and in untitled orders, look like
picayune stuff"
Deplores Type of Production.
Repeating what he said at direc-
tors meeting three months ago. the
steel executive deplored the fact
that the activity was production
for destruction, saying:
1--WE would all be glad to relin-
qulsh this business and concentrate
our activities on constructive pro-
duction."
The September quarter net profit
was the second highest in Bethle-
hens history, SO 1852 288, or 1858 a
comomn share, compared with S1O,-
607,318, or S3.07 a share. in the June
quarter, and s5.37747O, or s1.1O
share, in the September, 1899, quar-
ter. The last three months of 1889
set a company earnings record of
s13,028, 1928.
Mr.. Grace said the companys
mills now were turning out products
at 103 per cent of their rated ca
pacity and that for the three
months ended September 80 they
had averaged 500 per cent. This
compares with production at 70.1
per cent in the like 1899 period.
Employment at Record High.
Bethlehem's employment in the
Septeber quarter reached a record
high average of 123.343 men and
women. Mr.. Grace replied with an
emphatic mo" when asked whether
the company was negotiating with
the C. I. o.
II know of nothing" he added.
shat contemplates any change at
all in our labor policy or our labor
methods. We have had no part in
any action which would make our
labor policy appear to be political
issue"
Mr.. Grace insisted that Bethle-
hens labor policies conformed in
every respect" to the requirements
of collective bargaining as defined in
the National Labor Relations Act.
Reading from a memorandum, he
asserted that Bethlehem had prac-
ticed collective bargaining for more
than 20 years, long before laws were
passed to make it mandatory.
Says Choice Is Given.
Eve want our men," he said, "to
have whatever organization they
choose to represent them in COL
lective bargaining.
an plants where majority Or
ganization has been established by
some authentic means and has been
certified as such, that organization is
being recognized by us as the COL
lective bargaining agency. Where
no majority organization has been
established and certified we are rec
ognizing and dealing with repre-
sentatives of all groups for collective
bargaining"
The chairman asserted he was
confident the Nations steel capacity
was ample to care both for defense
needs and normal commercial de-
mands.
Lets not add to our headaches a
large initiation of capacity for staple
commodities" he said. 81 see no
need for curtailing any of our nor
NAL commercial requirements be-
cause of the national defense pro-
gram.
Il should not expect national de-