A HARDWARE TRUST
Tremendous Combination of Capital
to Control Trade.
MUCH CAPITAL IS REPRESENTED
A Combination That Proposes to
Dominate the Hardware Business
of the Country.
New York, Special, Authoritative
announcement of a consolidation of
the great hardware interests in the
country in a combination capitalized
at $120,000,000 will be made by The
Iron Age. The consolidation embraces
the Simmons Hardware Company, at
St Louis; Bindley Hardware Compa
ny, of Pittsburg ; William Bingham
Company, of Cleveland; . Supp ee
Hardware Company, of Philadelphia ,
Pacific Hardware and Steel Company.,
of Duluth; Bigelow & Dowse Compa
re, of Boston; VanCamp Hardware
Company, of Indianapolis; George Et
rich Hardware Company, of Denver;
Janney, Semple, Hill & Cof of Min
neapolis, and forty other houses, rep
resenting nearly every important
trade centre oi! the country. Negoti
ations are still pending with other
houses, and it is expected there will;
be further accessions to the number
already named in the combination.
The Iron Age says:
"Several names have been suggest
ed for the consolidation, such as the
National Hardware and. Metal Com
pany, International Hardware and
Metal Company, and there is little
doubt that one of these will be chos
en. It is purposed that the officials
shalLbe as follows:' E .C. Simmons,
president; John Bindley, vice presi
dent, x and W. D. Simmons, chairman
of the . executive committee. There
will be a board of , directors, consist
ing of from 25 to SO persons repre
senting the different sections of the
country. There will also be an ex
ecutive committee of nine. ,
"The forming of the company is at
tended to by Moore & Schley, of New
York, and George B. Hill & Co., of
Pittsburg. It is intended to incorpo
rate under the laws of New Jersey
with a capital of $120,000,000; $40,
000,000 preferred and $80,000,000 com
mon stock. The pofits will be a 6
per cent, cumulative stock, preferred
both for liquidation and dividends.:
The general , headpuarters for buying
; and selling and transportation of
goods will be In St. Louis. The East
ern headquarters will be in New York.
"The principle of home rule will bo
recognized in connection with the lo
cal houses, who will make their own
selling prices, except so far as this
may interfere with the buying depart
ment or the expressed wishes of the
manufacturers, which it will be the
policy of the company to respect.
Each house will be held responsible
for the results of its business and if
they AreL not satisfactory the house
will be closed. The company natur
ally expects to purchase goods on the
most favorable terms, in view of the
large volume- they will handle, and
various economies will be secured as
the direct result of the consolibatiou.
. "As at present constituted it is es
timated by the company that they will
embrace something like two-thirds yrt
the distributing efficiency of the job
bing trade of the country in the hard
ware line. Thejr are content that the
other third should remain competi
tors, as it is not intended to monopo
lize the jobbing business' "
Election Law Crltfc'sed.
Washington, Special. A criticism
of the election law of Virginia is
made in the report , filed by House
elections committee No. 3, in the case
of James A. Walker vs. Wm. P.
Rhea, from the ninth district of Vir
ginia. The committee reports in favor
of Rhea, as the contestant has died.
The law Is criticised as "repugnant
to all lovers of fair play and honest
elections." An appeal is madeto the
constitutional convention of Virginia
and to the General Assembly to make
changes which will insure a fair and
free vote and an honest count. Repre
sentative Johnson, of South Carolina,
dissents from that part of "the report
making "strictures on the laws and
thr, people of Virginia."
Drove Nail Into Husband's Head.
Wellington, " Kans., Special In
Grant county, Oklahoma, Ju3t across
the line from here; Mrs. Peoples, a
Bohemian, is reported to have killed
her husband bys driving a nail into his
head. Peoples, a farmer, went home
drunk, beat his wife and afterward
ordered her to set his supper and
went to sleep with his head leaning
gainst pine 'partition. When supper
was ready the woman tried to awaken
him but failed. Fearing that he would
beat her again when he awoke for
not calling him, she drove 'i a nail
through from the other side of the
partition in the man's head, killing
him. She made no attempt to escape.
Declined to Remove Boycott.
I Norfolk, Special. By a vote of 1C to i
14 the Central Labor Union of this city
nave declined to remove the boycott
against the Norfolk Railway and Light
Company which has - been on since.
March 1. This means that -the fight
mm be. continued Indeflnitely. ; Tae
car are running on schedule time and
r tr experiencing no incovenience.
PRESIDENT'S EXPOSITION SPEECH.
Says Many Things Complimentary
to Southern Progress.
The address of Pr ident Roosevelt
at "Charleston Wednesday was well-
timed ana well received. The President
said in part: ' ; ';.'.-.;;.'V- . '
"it is to me a peculiar privilege to
speak here in your beautiful city. My
mother's people were from Georgia;
but before they came to Georgia, be
fore the Revolution, in the days of Co
lonial rule, they dwelt for nearly a
century in South Carolina; and there
fore I can claim your State as mine by
inherrance no less than by the stronger
and nobler right which makes each foot
of American soil in a sense the proper-,
ty of air Americans-
"Charleston is not only a typical
Southern city; it is also a city whose
history teems with events which link
themselves to American history as a
whole. In the early Colonial days
Charleston was the outpost of our peo
ple against the Spaniard in the South.
In the days of the Revolution there oc
curred here some of the events which
vitally affected the outcome of the
struggle for independence, and which
impressed themselves most deeply upon
the popular mind. It was here that the
tremendous, terrible drama of the civil
war opened.
"With delicate and thoughtful cour
tesy you originally asked me to come to
this, exposition on the birthday of
Abraham Lincoln. The invitation not
only shows a fine generosity and man
liness in you, my hosts, but it also em
phasized as hardly anything else could
have emphasized how completely we
are now a united people. The wounds
left by the great civil war, incompara
bly the greatest war of modern times,
have healed; and its memories are now
priceless heritages of honor alike to
the North and to the South. The de
votion, the self-sacrifice, the steadfast
resolution and lofty daring, the high
devotion to the rights as each man saw
it, whether Northerner or Southerner
all these qualities of the men and wo
men of the early sixties now shine lu
minous and brilliant before our eyes,
while the mists of anger and hatred
that once dimmed them have passed
away forever.
"Ail of us. North and South, can
glory alike in the valor of the men who
wore the blue and tie men who wore
the gray. Those were iron times, and
only iron men could fight to its terrible
finish the giant struggle between the
hosts of Grant and Lee. To us of the
present day, and to our -children and
children's children, the valiant deeds,
the high endeavor, and abnegation cf
self shown in that struggle by those
who took part therein will remain for
overmore to mark the level to which
we in our turn must rise whenever the
hour of the nation's need may come.
"When four years ago this nation
was compelled to face a foreign foe, the
completeness of the reunion (became In
stantly and strikingly evident. The
war. was not one which called for the
exercise of more than an insignificant
fraction ofVur strength, and the strain
put upon us was slight indeed com
pared with the results. But it was a
satisfactory thing to see the way. In
which the sons of the soldier of the
Union and the soldier of the Confeder
acy leaped eagerly forward, emulous
to show in brotherly rivalry th quail-,
ties which bad won renown for, their
fathers, the men of the great war. It
was my good fortune to serve under
an ex-Confederate general, gallant old
Joe Wheeler, who commanded the cav
alry at Santiago.
"In my regiment there were certainly
as many men whose fathers had served
in the Southern, as there were men
whose fathers had served in the North
ern army. Among the captains there
wa3 opportunity to promote but one
to field rank. The man who was sin
gled out far this promotion because of
conspicious gallantry in the field was
the son of a Confederate general and
was himself a citizen of this, the Pal
metJo'State; and no American officer
could; wish to march to battle besides a
more loyal, gallant, and absolutely
fearless comrade than my former cap-1
tebJn and major, your fellow-citizen,"
Micajah Jenkins.
"A few months ago, owikg to the en
forced absence of the Governor, of th
Philippines, It. became necessary , to-
nominate a Vice Governor to take his
piace one of th e most important places
in our government at this time. I nom
inated as Vice Governor an ex-Confederate.-
Gen. Luke Wright, of Tennes
see. Its Is therefore an ex-Confederate
who now stands as the cxnonent f
this government and this people in that
great group of Islands in the eastern
seas over which the American flag
floats. Gen. Wright' has taken a lead
ing part in the work of steadily bring
ing order and peace out of bloody chaos
in which we found the islands. He is
now taking a leading part not merely
In upholding the honor of the flae bv
making It respected as the symbol of
our power, but still more in unholdlne
1 ts honor by unwearied labor for the
establishment of ordered liberty--of
law-creating, law-abiding civil gov
ernment under its folds. - .
"The progress which has been mada
unaer uen. wnght and those like him
has been indeed marvelous. In fact a
lener or tne general's the other dav
fmeA o shojv: that he considered
there was far more warfare about th
Philippines In this country than
was warfare in the Philippines them
selves! It is an added proof 6f th mm.
pleteness of the reunion of our mnnfrv
that one of the foremost men who have
oeen instrumental In driving forward
the great work for civilization and Iin
manity In the Philippines has been a
man who in the civil war fought with
distinction in a uniform of Confederate
"Ifevcr , the, need comes in tne iu
ture the past. has made abundantly evi
dent thfe fact that from this time on
Northerner arid Southerner will In. war
know only the generous desire to.strlv
how each can do the more effective ser
vice forthe flag of ourommon coun
try. The same thing Is true In the end
less work of peace, the never-ending
work, of building and keeping the mar
velous fabric or our industrial pros
perity. , '
Strikers Defy Court Order.
. Kansas City; Special Striking jour
neymen bakers have disregarded an
order issued by Judge John Henry, of
the Circuit Court, restraining them
. from interfering with the business, of
Warnekc's bakery and one. of them
went so far as to throw the court's or
der into the street when the deputy
served it. What couse Judge Henry
will take remains yet to be Been. The
strikers have interfered wth the bak
er's business by standing in front ol
his shop and telling all persons whe
passed not to patronise the store, as
its manager was antagonistic to or
ganized labor.
engineer and Fireman Killed. '
Griffin, Ga., SpecIaL A northbound
pauscuger train on the Central of Ged
gia Railroad ran into an open switch,
half a mile below this city, colliding
with a string of freight, cars standing
on the side track. None of the passen
gers were injured, but Engineer Ram
say and Fireman Green, of the passen
ger train were painfully hurt. ,The
engine of the; passenger train was par-;
tially demolished, and several freight
cars wrecked." Traffic was blocked for
two and a half hours. 4
Another Railroad Deaf.
Chicago, SpeciaL rTho Record-Herald
says: "Upon the authority of a
large stockholder In the Plant Sys
tem, it is stated that the Pennsylva
nia interests will soon acquire pos
session of the allied Plant and Atlan
tic Coast ay stems. In this fact it is
alleged is to bo found the reason for
the purchase by the Atlantic Coast
Lino of the Plant System, which has
surprised the railroad world. Should
the Pennsylvania secure the two sys
tems they will add a total of 3,970
miles of line, bringing the total to
20,000 oiles under one control.
Trains Wrecked and Corned.
Cheraw S. ' c SpecIaL -Freight
trains Nos. 22 and 52 on the Seaboard
Air Line, running north from Colum
bia, had a rear-end collision on a very
heavy grade near McRee, twenty milca
from here. ; Train. No. 22 came rushing
down hill at a high rate of speed and
crashed into No. 52, which had stop
ped to fix a pin which had dropped
from one of a the cars. Train -No 22
was a total wreck and a Are destroyed
it.
Virginia Mountains Snow Covered.
Roanoke. Va Special. Snow has
fallen here and the weather hat
turned very cold. The mountains are
covered with , several inches of snow.
Further . west the mercury has regis
tered two degrees below freezing
since early Tuesday morning and
snow has been falling at intervals.
Fruit trees t are not yet in bloom and
if the wind continues high there will
be little damage from the cold snap
Democrats Carry Kansas City.
Kansas City, Special. At midnlgh'
the returns of the city election in
dicate the re-election of Mayor Jas.
A. Reed, Democrat, over John G.
Green, Republican, by 2,250 plurality.
Tne remainder of the; Democratic
ticket was elected by similar Dlurali
ties. The Democrats will fully control
the city government for tjie first time
m many years.
' ' ' . ' 1 ' !
City Editor E. W. Caldwell; of the1
Evening journal, was elected Mayor
of Sioux City. la.
First Aid to Fiction. :
The third ; unsuccessful attempt
within a month to read a historical ro
mance moves us to suggest to the As
sociation of American . Publishers that
a long f elt want would be supplied by
a "Skippers Index." The best kind
would be a marginal Index. H would ,
refer the reader. to Hero and Heroine;'
D is for Duel; V is for Villain; K is for
King; A Is for Ambuscade ; ;B;is for?
Escape: It is ftjr Rescue of Heroine;
S is for Supper at the inn. Y By refer
ring to these topics in tints stereotyped
order: of Incidents,- one could get
through a romance in twenty mtnates,
or forty most; if the thing were well
enough done to warrant loitering. 1 As
it is, only the professional reieWers
are able to " skip: "scientifically -and
surely; the rest of vs mast keep tarn
ing; pages in searc" 01 ; the required:
Incident; and turning pages; no matter
how ;? tast. takes Suable time; r.Xet
us - ,haye aSHppiera Indea; tTessrsi
Publishers. , It win not teterfere wlttt
the pleasure cf rreaderaT that IlkV to
know ttiat -iaie" last; raya 6T thde-
tn nine sao ,were linting w western
Wlte- and ttrtf fame fcrTeaders
t:.x'loVfaitrde:t ctory the
book faay; errnlnTn Catena -Tribune.
SOUTHERN INDUSTRIAL
$200,000 nill for Griffin, Ga.
Mention was made last month that
Messrs. .Douglas Boyd, J.' J. Mangham
and others were - organizing a compa
ny to build a cotton factory, the fifth,
at Griffin. Ga. It is! now announced
that the required capital of f 200,000
has all' been subscribed, and will be
issued as $125,000 of common stock
and $75,000 of preferred stock. Arti
cles of incorporation' 1 have been pre
pared under the title of the Boyd-
Mangham Manufacturing a,u., auu ay
riHoation has been filed with the char-
tor authorities.' The -greater portion
of i the capital is being furnished by
local capitalists, but Eastern parues
will also i be interested as stockhold
ers. As soon as charter has. been is
sued the company will . make prepa
rations to begin the construction or
ita nlant: An eauipment of 10,000
spindles and 300 looms is proposed.
$500,000 Company at Pell City; Ala.
It was reported some weeks ago
that CoL Sumoter Cogswell 01 ren
City, Ala., was negotiating with New
England capitalists for the estaDiisn
ment of a large cotton factory at Pell
City. The Pell City Manufacturing
Co. has now been mcorporatea w
erect and equip the! plant, capital
stock being placed at $500,000. The
incorporators are Messrs. Sumpter
Cogswell of Pell City; C. E. Riley and
W. R. Sears of Boston, Mass.; G. W.
Pratt, A. J. Draper, J. D. Cloudman
and E. Chappell of Atlanta, . ua. it
is stated that arrangements will -oe
made to decide details and begin
work this month. I - f :
Mill to Add Looms.
Important betterments have been
decided upon by. the Knoxville Cotjton
Mills f!o.. of Knoxville. Tenn., anu
work on same' has alrleady begun. The
comnany is building an addition two
stories high, 90x100 ifeet, which will
make its main buildfng 100x320 feet
in nil Tho nrinclnai maenmery 10
be Installed will bo sufficient num
M mm m " - X. r
ber of looms (probably 300) to man
ufacture into cloth the product of the
present 10,000 spindles. About $25,
000 will be expended If or the improve
ments. The plant is ; only a year old.
Textile Notes.
ijQray Mills of Gastonia, N. C, re
ceived an order last (week for 2,000
bales of sheeting for shipment s tc
Shanghai, China. About $100,000 is
probably involved in a contract of this
extent. . The Loray Company just
started its plant in f January, begun
weaving in February, and In March
sent samples of its product to' the
Shanghai trade. This order is the re
sult The mill has 50,244 ring spindles
and 1680 looms. j
Wm. Krenning has -been elected
treasurer and general manager of the
Wytheville (Va.) Woolen & Knitting
Mills Co., a concern which he orlr-na-ted
and was not connected with for
about a year. Mr. Krenning purchased
a controlling interest in the enterprise.
The plant consists of a complete two
set mill, manufacturing cassimeres,
blankets, hosiery, etc.
Plant of the Great Falls Cotton Mills
Co., of Falls City, Tenn., was comple
tely destroyed by floods in Tennessee
last month. This was the first time
the mill had ever sustained any dam
age from high water. The company
was -capitalized; at $50,000, and does
not intend to rebuild. H. - Walling,
was treasurer. j
Hawkins Manufacturing Co. of
Hillsboro, Texas, has been organized
with capital stock of $15,000, for tex
tile manufacturing, 'etc. .The direc
tors are Messrs. H. P. Hawkins, T. G.
Hawkins, C. A. Sullenberger, W. R.
i-aiierson, : r. lomimson, m. .
Hughes and J. K. Parr.
It is proposed at Magnolia, Miss., to
form a company with capital of $50,
000 or $75,000 for the erection of a
cotton mill. J. E. Wolfe is interested,
and is asking for full information as
to cost of building, cost of machinery
date when machinery can be deliv
ered, etc. . ;
; Cuero (Texas) Cotton Mill has ai
.ranged to install 3004 additional spin
,1
ales, which will bring the equipmen
tafr -to the capacity I of the present
buildings. There being now ' 249l
spindles in place, the Increased equip
ment will be 5000 spindles; the
looms at present number 360.
Messrs. HH. E. Tener, Jr., L. Flenv
ing, Paul Jones, W. S. Hanson, Geo.
A. ; Mansfield, : Melvin Conish, L. W.
Bryana and W. H. Moore have incor
porated the Indian Territory Cotton
Products Co. of South McAlester, I. T.,
with a capital stock 6f $250,006.
Knoxville ' (Tenn.) j Woolen Mills is
changing its looms so as to manu
facture casslmeres instead of jeans,
the original product.j New, looms are
being installed, and t the entire mill
will soon be producing the new goods
! C. C. Newell of Utica, N. is vis
iting Texss; and is said to contem
plate the erection of a knitting mill at
San Antonio, Waco -'or' some, other
Texas point where proper facilities
can be obtained; Mr. Newell is en
gaged In the knitting industry in his
State. . .
v Tenniile (Ga.) Cotton ,.Mills: will
probahly be put in operation in the
near future:. Either the property will
be sold of B. E. Willingham, a cotton--goodsmanufacturer
-n of Macon, Ga
will; take charge of the plant in the
interest of the bond-holders, v ;. xz
W. P. Anderson !bf Westminster, S.
contemplates buildine a knltMne
plant; tcT invest probably, $40,000. Man
oiaccurers or the reauired machlnerv
j are Invited to send catalogues and in
IN CONGRESS,
Detailed Doings of Our m.
. makers ' k
HOUSE.
Ninetieth Day The feabr
second day's debate in the
the Cuban reciprocity bill wa 1
passioned speech: in oppositin' 311
measure by , Wm. A, Smith a 5 to ?
Republican. Senators Spoon
Quareus; of Wisconsin; and Doi? S
Iowa, and a group of Michif N
sugar : manufacturers were in tK H
iery and he was liberally annia,?,eH
his Republican supporters
sailed the Republican leader ZyK
arlvnontino- thft. "Kill w0kl
them with being false to the R H
can doctrine of protection tl
course of his remarks he an A
that he war willing 47 .W
. t.yj VULy . X
amendment to take the different
refined sugar.
Mr. Morris, of Minnncr.f
Remihiican. who mads a of ' ail!5tN
azninst the bill, alsn ma. .Ss'
announcement. The other snvli
day were MrJ Ball, Democrat of t 1
and Mr. Sparkman, Democrat of tS
both of whom opposed the hm
Mr. Mendell, of Wyoming,
cated its passage: : m-.
The, Democrats and Republican
ponents of the measure are tryiJ
get together on the proposition ? I
1 m 111 if.iii ih 1 1 iHi 1 n on'
- -.. ugar t.
protracted. The demand for time
3peak Is great and there is .
pectation that tho general debate
be completed, until next week 1
In the course of Mr. Smith's snJ
Mr. Underwood, of Alabama, askedr
Smith if he would vote to take the)
ferential off refined sugar comin.5
wuvu. viuim icyiicvl mat flo
fined sugar came from Cuba and
turn asked Mr. ' Underwood if hie
Democratic) side wouid vote too!
rule ine cnair and join in votin?
take the differential off the su2
cne wona. Alter some sparring
! 3 l- f TI J. - . 0.(11,
iug wiuuu lur. unaerwooa shoijj
disposition to evade the question
response ' to the promptings
ucmuuttis uiuuiiQ mm, ne nnalfh
tured the prediction that therew
uc au uypurtuuiiy 10 Vote UDOH
proposition to take the differ1
oft the sugar of the world, "if tw
is." observed Mr. Smith, "I will t
your vote with, great interest"
"We are not here," said Mr. MoJ
wto make laws for thW benefit of J
aiers 01 .fortune who sro to. fhihs
stead of home and of such buccar
is Mr. mvemeyer, the head of
iugar trust." "But, 'gentlemen."
ndded, turning to his Republican 1
lessues, "if you are : determined to
mio LUiug, it you insist UpOIl glTS
tne sugar trust a present of two an!
half millions, let us give the M
trust a dose of its own medicine. 1
us take the differential off of reSi
sugar under which the trust has gro?
strong and powerful." He called u
the Democrats to stand with tie Pi
publicans and "hit" the sugar rj
and "hit it hard." The Demon-
cried out that they would join if
ously.
Mr. Ball, of Texas, denied that tit
bill was in line with Democratic dl
trine, because it was admitted that
would not result in reducing the pr:
of sugar to the American consumer,
sole beneficiary, he argued, would
the sugar trust.
; SENATE.
Ninetieth Day Throughout
day's session of the Senate the u
nese -exclusion bill was under coj
deration. Three speeches wer delij
ed upon the subject by Mr. Galling
of New Hampshire, and Mr. Dill
ham, of Vermont,' opposing it, and I
Turner, of Washington, supportinjj
Mr. Gallinger urged that the pen
bill was unnecessary. I
Mr. Gallinger maintained that J
pending subject was a matter forC
lomatic negotiation and not for sj
gressional. action. In this connect;
he read Minister Wii'a recent letter
Secretary of State Hay, In which
protested against the enactment of
bill, declaring that it would disturb
friendly relations betwen the W
1
Mr. Mitchell, of Oregon, inquireei
Mr, gallinger .what he thought o J
propriety pf a foreign minister cm
ing measures pending before Com
Mr. Poraker, of Ohio, said that J
Chinese minister clearly was
his rights. J
j In an extended address, Mr. TiK
appealed jo the Senate to passthe
posed. bill, not merely for the pr&j
tion of the. people of the Pacific
but to prevent the entire body
from being .contaminated by the h
nese. ...:, . . I
Mr. Dillingham advocated the &
actraerit orthe present Geary 1-,
declared that representatives
Pacific States had expressed themjj
as prfectly satisfied with the opei
of the existing law and that there J
no proper reason for a change. Vj
larly as the. change would invoke ffj
trouble, and expense J
Mr. Fairbanks, of Indiana. reP
favorably frotn the committee
migration the Chinese exclusion ;
nassed hv th Wn.Too nf Hepr J
tlves. It was placed '6n the ca
k Trains Wrecked and Burn- J
, . Cheraw,.:' S. ' C.. 4 SpeciaW
trains Nos. 22: and 52 on the Seap
Air Line,: running north fro"
bla, had; aireaT-endJ collision oB
heavy-grade nearfeBee, J
from here. Train No. 22 came
down hill at a high rate of V J
crashed, into No. 52, which hajiv
pe4Mto fix. a.pinwhich faa.
from ohe of the carsJ?v 5V