The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1947-04-04

G. Farbenndustrie (nazfcontroed chemical trust) in
Withholding from production Butyl synthetic rubber
in 1940-41-when country to disaster be-
of the rubber shortage?
?. How about the University of Wisconsin alumni
research foundation, which through a. monopoly and
cartel arrangements priced vitamin completely out
of reach of rs per cent of our people? Foundation
scientists discovered vitanin in 1925. During the
war 100000 young men from poorer families were re-
jected At because of bone and teeth defects and
muscular undevelopment9 million reflections of young
who grew up between 1925945 because of defects
solely chargeabe to vitamn d deficiency. Could not
the Wisconsin foundation be considered as "unAmeri-
can? These high-mnded free enterprsers" also had
cartel arrangements with l. G. Farbenndustrie Mote:
The vitamin D trust finally knocked into cooked
hat January II, 1916, by a decision of the Z. S.
supreme court)
g. Then there is that fine old baston of the Amer
lean way'-the Anaconda Copper & Brass subsidiary
of the Anaconda Copper Mining Company How many
American and allied soldiers lost their lives during the
due to the deliberate manufacture defective
munication cable by AC&B? You will recall this
ley outfit Of profit thieves was fined $16OOO0O
having 'rigged" cabetesting equipment to indicate
compliance with government specifications when actl-
ally the product considerably below standard. If
not reasonable, surely the AC&B must behaved
in manner not becoming to the highest concepts of
American business morality.
4. Or, the DUPONT company which for years has adj
vertised better things for better living through chem
istry This aging American concern by nature of its
business has than few times found itself guilty
of capitalzng the doctrine of scarcity in cahoots
with other chemical outfits including l. G. Farbenin
dustrie to maintain artificiay high prices. couple
of examples should suffice in questioning the Amer
icanism' of this -gargantuan concern.
The DUPONT Jackson laboratories about 1910 deve-
oped the monastral colors for making dyes These
colors represented great technical achievement
the art of dyeng and could be produced for fraction
of the cost of old-line dyes This Responsiveness
plus the versatility of these dyes however threat
ened to disturb the high price scales of duPonts
tile dyes Therefore dupont were instructed
to perfect of making these applicable only
oil To ma Ike them
unsuitable for textiles the varying of the color
formulas to include certain resins solvents which
are irritating to the skin, often causing dermatts
They also considered including acids in the formulas to
eat away any cotton material which textile manu-
facturers might apply the colors
In another instance DUPONT and Rohm & Haas had
cartel arrangements setting the prices acrylic
ture blanks at $500. These made from the du
Pont developed plastic pexglas their frss effort
to prevent other dental plate manufacturers from max
ing blanks and undersellng the combine they refused
to license peXglas in liquid form manufactur-
permitting only the licensing of plastic pow
dered form. The other manufacturers soon caught
to the trick of cracking" the powder securing
ficient liquid plastic still manufacture and sell dental
blanks for less than 10 per the price of
$500. In desperation then the cartel members re-
searched further found that dental plates could be
classed under the Pure Food and Drug act Chemists
were then set to work to improve" the formula of the
powdered plastic by adding a small amount of arsenic
just enough to make the plates of noncarte member
unsuitable for human in the eyes
all
competition in this particular field destroyed and the
artel permitted to carry its extortiOn of $4 for
blanks which cost less than Csc to produce.
Would not the etching powder and arsenic pro-
;vities of the duPont-Rohm & Haas combine be
dered something less than the highest type of true
Americansm"?
Similarly, in discussing this highly controversial
subject of 'un-Amercanism" from more than just the
bogeyman" side of it, we should also consider how
ALCOA for almost half century kept the price of
umnum so high Cts one of the cheapest metals to
roduce actually that it's chiefly limited to
gh-prced pots and pans in the Kitchen except when
G. Farbenindustrie sought and received great guam
tiles of before the at most reasonable prices
i'd the building of the nazi luftwaffe.
Likewise, any discussion of "Americanism" should
include appraisal of the morality of Electric
nd Westinghouse in deliberately cutting the light life
pan of bulbs first from 1000 to $50 hours later
down from 300 to 200 hours. Further emphasis dur
1g this month of April might also be noted connec
ion with cancer-No. 2 killer in the naton-and how
e has deliberately INSTRUCTED the production of GER
ain treating equipment, to maintain its high
rofit policy.