I
THE TIN PLATE TKUST.
Ail Excellent Sample of Tariff TriiBt.
[ BY Bviiox W. HOLT. ]
The tin plate industry affords an ex
cellent object lesson for the study of the
tariff trust question. It is the one par
ticular industry to which the protection
ists always "point with pride" because ,
as they tell ns , it would not have existed
in this country had there been no Mc-
Kinlny tariff bill. In the sense that the
tariff is the mother of the industry they
admit that the tariff is the mother of
the trust that undoubtedly exists in the
industry.
Free traders on * their part , welcome
the discussion , and are able to pres"ut
iudisputable evidence that the industry
has cost the American people , because
of the tariff , an enormous amount more
than it is worth and that the balance on
the wrong side , in spite of sanguine
predictions , continues to increase while
the duty is retained.
Moreover , they hold that , whether or
not the tiriff is directly responsible for
the tin plate trust , it is clearly respon
sible for the high prices which the trust
is extorting from American consumers.
In the first place it is instructive to
inquire how much American consumers
have paid in the last nine years in order
that thin industry should bn established.
The duty on imported tin plates was
one cent per pound previous to July 1 ,
1891 ; then 22 cents until October 1 ,
1894 ; then 1 2 cents until July 24 , 1697 ;
since then 1 5 cents per pound.
'
Su
( Imports in 1899,108,48i ! > 28 pounds ; domestic
prorturtion in 1899 , estimated at 750,000,000
pounds. )
Tlie price of imported plates in bond
in New York is obtained by adding 1-10
Vv V
cent per pouud to th foreign , or invoice
price , as given in the Statistical Ab
stract. This amount covers transporta
tion charges. The New York price is
i" * the actual price at which IO Bessemer
Coke 14x20 tin plate sold in New York in
each year. The difference column shows
exactly how much more the wholesale
buyer paid for tin plates in New York
than he would have paid had there been
no duty.
Rebates on re-exported tin plates in
manufactured forms ( the exact figures
are not attainable ) reduce this total to
between $80,000,000 and $84 000.000. as
the direct cost in the last nine years of
"creating" the industry. This is the
extra amount paid by wholesalers and
metal workers , but by the time they
were repaid by the American people
who ultimately bought the goods a.ul
footed the bills , the addition of legiti
mate profits swelled the amount to over
$1(0000 ( 000.
Our people paid this for a competitive
industry which promised to put prices
down ; they got for their money a
monopoly which arbitrarily mark- *
them up.
In 1898 the industry was well on its
feet and capable of existing without
tariff support. In November of that
year the price at the mills in Pittsburg
lad fallen to § 2 05 per box , which was
within 5 cents of the" price of foreign
plates in New York , without duty.
The Trust Described.
During 1898 negotiations were begun
to form a company that should control
all the plates of the country. These
negotiations were finally successful
and , in December , the trust was
launched under the laws of New Jersey
as the American Tin Plate Company.
This is such a model and well-
developed trust that a brief description
of it will be both interesting and in
structive.
It is capitalized at $50.000.000-$20.-
000.000 preferred and $30,000 000 com
mon stork. It contains about 40 plants
and 280 mills. The total cost of dupli
cating these mills in 1898 ( about $20.000
per mill ) was not more than $6 000 000.
The value of the real estate purchased
and the cash wirh which the trust begnn
business probably made the actual value
of the assets of the company , as its
foundation , between $10.000,000 and
$12,000,000. The price paid for these
plants is said to hnve been $18,000 000 of
common and $18000,000 of preferred
stock. The promoter retained $10 000.-
000 of common stork for his services
and $2 000,000 of each kind of stock re
mains in the company's treasury. The
present market value of the stock is 86
for the preferred and 38 for the com
mon. The total value of the outstand
ing stock is , therefore , $20,000,000.
While this company may not be
legally a trust , in the original sense of
the word , its executive committee is
cleverly constructed to perform the
work of actual trustees. The members
cannot be removed by the board of
directors , and have almost absolute
control. Stockholders cannot examine
the books of the company.
This trust now owns practically every
mill in the country making tin plates
for the general trade.
If , as it expects to do , the American
Tin Plate Company holds its present
tight grip on the tin plate bar market ,
none of the above mills can ever make
tin plates except by the grace of the
trust. Its present policy is to permit no
company to make tin plates except for
its own use.
Neither Mills Nor Ultra for Outsiders.
To maintain its monopoly it is paid to
have five-year agreements with the six
or. eight manufacturers of tin plate
machinery which prevent them from
making mills for outsiders. It is , there
fore , nearly impossible for outsiders to
obtain equipments for tin plate plants.
Furthermore the trust is so inter-looked
with the other trusts which produce tin
plate bars that it is doubtful if any real
competitor could obtain bars and other
raw materials. Thus the National
Steel Co. capital $59,000,000 was
organized in the interest of t-.he Ameri
can Tin Plate Company and for the
purpose of controlling the production of
tin plate bars. The close connection
between the two great trusts is evident
from the fact , that the President , D. G.
Reid , Vice-Presidents Win. F. Leeds ,
Win. T. Graham and Warner Arms ,
and the Treasurer , Fred S. Wheeler of
the American Tin Plato Company , are
all directors of the National Steel Co.
Similar , though not such close connec
tions , exist with some of the other steel-
producing trusts. On this point the
American Metal Market , of May 9 ,
said :
' 'Up to the prepent the trust owning
every mill in the United States has had
to compete with the re-sale of plates
purchased at low prices. * * * As
regards new mills , all the talk and
efforts in this direction seem to be dying
out.
' 'The consolidation of the steel interests
lately effected , and which as far as raw
material for tin plate mills are con
trolled by the Tin Plate Trust , makes it
unwise to erect tin plate mills , as they
apparently could not at present secure
their raw material. We , therefore ,
find the Tin Plate Trust entire masters
of the situation , and it will be absolutely
easy for them to regulate production to
the requirements of consumption. The
chances of any change in the tariff are
too remote and uncertain to enter at
present into the calculation. "
To limit the supply to the restricted
demand at the artificially high prices
the trust has closed the following mills :
Mills Closed by Trusts.
Baltimore Tin Plato Co. , Baltimore , Md. , 2
mills.
Britton Rolling Mill Co. , Cleveland , O. , 3
rni"s.
" "
"CiijJ-'nati Rolling Mill & Tin Plato Co. ,
Cincinnati O. , 4 mills.
Ctiinbtirland steel & Tin Plato Co. , Cumber
land , Md. , 5 mills.
Hamilton & Co , , West Newton , Pa. . 2 mills.
Marshall Bros. & Co. , Philadelphia , Pa. , 0
mills
Ohio River Sheet & Tin Plato Co. . Rochester ,
Pa. , 2 mills.
ROHUTH Bros. . Brooklyn , N. Y. , 8 mills.
Stielmey Iron Co. , Baltimore , Md. , 2 mills.
Total , 9 plants 84 mills.
The two plants at Baltimore and the
one at Brooklyn have been dismantled.
Two or three other plants are said to be
closed much of the time. While several
of the mills closed were built as experi-