Jasper County Democrat, Volume 20, Number 90, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 February 1918 — LIFTING OF THE CAMOUFLAGE [ARTICLE]

LIFTING OF THE CAMOUFLAGE

Pi-ices Fixed For Coal By Fuel Administrator Not Followed. An hour spent in a coal office in the city today convinces the writer that the coal situation here is a long way from satisfactory. The constant demand for coal and the limited supply, make it most difficult for the dealers and very unsatisfactory for the patrons.—Tuesday’s Rensselaer Republican. Perhaps the fact that the editor of the Republican owns an interest in one of the coal yards here may account for his devoting so much of his valuable time in the coal offices and his unusual interest in the fuel situation. It may also account for his “helping the fuel administrator in every way possible,’’ and the extensive use of camouflage in the columns of the Republican. No one questions the honesty or integrity o's the fuel administrator, but the value of help from such an interested quarter imay justly be questioned. The gentleman who was conservant with the prices paid for Indiana coal at the mines and the freight rate, war tax, etc., who recently requested The Democrat to publish same that the people might know whether or not they were paying excessive prices, evidently knew what he was talking about, as The Democrat editor—who, by the way, was engaged in handling fuel for a few years some twentyfive years ago—has since investigated the matter more thoroughly and finds th 6 statement that the dealers were cleaning up about SIOO on every car handled was approximately correct. This information has been gathered froin various private sources where coal is purchased in car lots. That this is too great a per cent of a profit and more than the fuel adminisjtrator intended that it should be, is very evident. On November 7 the fuel administrator established retail prices of coal and caused to be published the following notice: RETAIL COAL PRICES FOR JASPER COUNTY. Linton No. 4, lump, delivered . $6.00 Minchell lump, delivered .... 6.00 Pbcahontas lump, delivered.. .7.50 Indiana mine run, delivered. . 5.50 Anthracite, nut, delivered.... 9.5'1 Anthracite, egg, delivered, . . . 9.25 Eastern coal, delivered...... 7.25 Brazil block, delivered. . .... . 6.75 Deduct 50 cents per ton from each of the above prices where coal is purchased at bin and delivery is made by purchaser. The above prices have been fixed by the county fuel administrator and any charges in excess of the above mentioned prices should be reported to him. B. F. FENDIG, County Fuel Administrator. Kindly note in the above that the price of anthracite egg is >9.25 delivered, and anthracite nut $9.50

delivered. Since the publication of the above notice the price of any and all kinds of hard coal has been $9.75 per ton delivered, although no notice has ever been given of an increase having been granted by. the administrator. Now, take the case of Indiana mine run. The price fixed above is $5.00 per ton at the bin and $5.50 delivered. If anybody in Jasper county has recently purchased a ton of Indiana mine run at the stated pnfcfe we would Ilka to hear from and when was an. increase granted? Indiana mine run coal has been sold here for weeks past at $6.00 per ton, we are told. In establishing the above prices an allowance of 35 cents per ton was made for binning. All of the dealers but one had bins alongside the railroad track, and 35 cents per ton is what this one dealer said it cost.him. to haul his coal from the car and bin it. Therefore, because this one dealer failed to have a- bln alongside the track the people o>f Jasper county must pay any anil all dealers 35 cents per ton more for coal. Is this just , and right? The Democrat’s interest in thia matter is purely the interest of the people Im general. Unlike the editor of the Republican we cannot approve excessive profits because “everybody is doing it.” When we published the original statement of a Rensselaer citizen concerning coal prices, we did eo from an unbiased position and would as readily and freely have published any statement the coal dealers had to make in their defense. Yet, but one dealer even so much as mentioned the matter to us. Instead they looked to the Republican to espouse their cause. And why? It may have been because the ex-coal-dealer editor has a financial interest in one coal yard and mora than a friendly interest in another. Here is the situation in a nutshell. The dealers* are allowed a legitimate profit, one dollar per ton approximately, on the cost of the coal at the mine, plus the freight, plus $12.50 a car to cover doubtful shortage, plus $17.50 per car to cover cost of binning (which they do not do), and plus 50 cents per ton for delivering. Yet, we are to 'infer from what the coal-dealer editor of the Republican says that too much profit is not being nt'de.