The weekly news review. (Florence, S.C.) 1922-1923, June 15, 1922, Image 6
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THE WEEKLY NEWS REVIEW
MR. DUKE COMES BACK
(By Edwin Dakin in Commere* and Finance)
, + f+H ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦»♦♦»♦*
James Brodie Duke is going to be
news again. Time was, in the anti
trust days, when Mr. Duke got on the
front page at least once a week, and
sometimes once a day. Something
was always happening to Mr. Duke
He was the first trust president to be
indicted for a criminal offnese in
conducting business. Thereafter he
was fnially dissolved. When he and
his various companies weren’t ac
cused of restraining trade, they were
charged with capitalising hydrants.
When news about the outrageous to
bacco trust was lacking, the papers
could tell about Mr. Duke himself.
Mr. Duke, it seemed, was not nearly
so terrible as his trust; the public
rather liked him.
Now, at the age of 65, he is return
ing from the quiet of years to head
the 6157,000,000 merger of the Retail
Stores Corporation, which controls
the United Cigar Stores, and the To
bacco Products Corporation. Why
he should wish to worry again with
business puzzles the newspapers;
surely, they state, not because he
needs the money.
It's probably just because he loves
the game.
Twenty years ago Mr. Duke’s money
was a live topic everywhere; when
ever a paper needed a Sunday filler,
the feature writer had only to knock
out a few paragraphs on the subject
of what Mr. Duke was doing to amuse
himself with bis millions, illustrate
the article with some clos#-ups of
the Duke palace out near Som*/*
ville, N. J., and public interest was
assured.
Him rise from obscurity always lent
body to a romantic tale. He was
born on a farm near Durham, North
Caroolina, in 1557, and grew up with
two brothers and a sister. After the
war his father started the cultivation
of tobacco, then began manufacturing
it into cigarettes and plug, using the
barn for a shop. The business went
pretty well, and when James was 14
his father told him he might go to
college. James declined with thanks
and asked to go into the business in
stead. This was the year one in the,
history of the tobacco industry.
In 1871 a new factory was buil
Things were brought to such a state
that tobacco still in hogsheads could
be manufactused, bagged, labeled arte,
delivered on the car in thirty min
utes. In 1889 the business amountet
to 84,600,000 a year. Six years be
fore he had oosne to New York to tr>
to buy out Allen & Ginter; they hao
laughed at him. Mr. Duke starteo
advertising; he invented the famous
coupon; he gave bonuses to retailers,
and he cut prices. There are stih
many who remember the warlike,
slashing challenge of Battle Ax Plug
—many who have chewed it. By 1891
the Messrs, Allen * Ginter had stop
ped laughing; they were glad enough
to call a truce and unite with Mr.
Duke to form a company capitalizoa
at ¥25,000,000
Thus war born the American To
bacco Co.
By the time Mr. Duke was 46 years
of age he was master of the industry.
Merger had followed merger; he con
trolled four-fifths of the tobacco out
put in this country. Then he extend
ed his activities abroad, and bought
up competing manufacturers in Eng
land, Germany, Russia, Egypt—
everywhere. By .1910 the tobacco
trust was declared to have more
money than it knew what to do with;
it paid dividends of 40 per cent, can
celed thirty millions of its own bonds
in less than a decade—and as a finale
offered to buy up a whole bond issue
of North Carolina.
Duke personally lived up to the
nppular idea—still prevalent in Eng
land anq ythef continental places—of
what an American ptiHioftairc ?b?uld
be. Those were the palmy days of
the brass cuspidor, and then, at least,
Mr. Duke chewed tobacco—his own
manufacture—constantly.
He had a 2,500-acre estate at
Somerville, N. J.; he called it his
fapm, and the mansion on it, his
‘‘club,” There was an artificial lake
on it of nlflV A£r£» that cost him a
million dollars. In aislditign, he had
sixteen other lakes, twenty water
falls, 200 fountains, 100,000 trees
millions of plants imported from Eu
rope and Asia, and 20,000,000 gallons
of water daily—one fall alone was 65
feet higlt—Alld he had a reservoir
James systematized the businessf for 50,000,000, MOttn&ins were built;
A Pleasant Ride
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TIMMONSVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA
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valleys were dug; 32 miles of macad
am drive led through exotic gardens.
The whole was open to the public
as a park until ruffians started chip
ping vital parts off statues of Venus,
Psyche, Apollo, and others; also the
voods were set on fire. Then the
-ates were closed, and the public was
nvited to stay out.
He always managed to get pub-
icity. He was lamost 50 years of age
>efore he decided to get married;
jrobably he hadn’t had time before,
^ot long after he was divorced. In
907 he married again—Mrs. Nanaline
iolt Inman, famous beauty of At-
anta. To celebrate the nuptials Mr.
Juke decided to make the estate at
Somerville duplicate fairyland; and
he fountains, lakes, and rivers on
(is grounds were made to flow so
ast that the Raritan River, which
‘ed them, was pumped dry. The Rari-
an Woolen Mills had to close up
hop. Wags of the day said that
leopatra had slacked her thirst for
luxury by drinking pearls dissolved
.n wine; but that Mrs. Duke had
nanaged to swallow a whole rive?
md a mill,
Mr. Duke gave comparatively little
o organized charity; he said he be-
ieved in “helping people help them-
elves,” In religion be called him^
;elf a roaring Methodist? He never
oared so loud as to go often to serv-
ce, but the Methodists could get a
ionation out of him when no one else
■ould. He promised to give the South-
jrn Methodist Episcopal Church an
innuity of $109,000 a year. About
his time, however, some Methodist
Jishop started an anti-chewing, anti-
smoking campagn. Mr. Duke’s feel
ings were hurt.
He always had a love for his native
South. He heavily endowed Trinity
college at Durham, and also erected
a negro hospital there. He establish
ed a fund fif $50,000,000 to enable
Southern farmers tg build their own
cotton manufacturing mills, and or
ganized the Southern Power Co. to
feed them electric power. In this
project he diverted some $16,000,000
of the profits of the American To
jacco Co. But this latter project did
not remain charity. The Southern
Power Co. eventually came to furnish
power to 45 cities and towns, to con
trol the power in three-fourths of the
mills in the South, and to have a
yearly net profit of over a million.
It was not so long afterward that
the Supreme Court of the United
States dissolved the American To
bacco Co. on the ground that it had
violated sections one and two of the
Sherman anti-trust act, and Mr. Duke
sailed for Europe to deVote his ef
forts to the British-Amercian Tobac
co Co., which he had fathered and
reared as blood brother to the Amer-
can. Mr. Duke was not, at the mo
ment, jq a patriotic mood.
When ceftajn officials of a coun
try,” he declared, “begin donqunping
its pioneers practically as crooks and
thieves and as ‘immoral,’ I should
think it is time for the old builders
of the country, and of its commerce,
to unite and get out or seek other
fields pf action.”
A newspape* reporter asked him if
this explained his departure to Eu
rope.
Mr. Duke shifted his quid and
clamped down his jaw.
“A closed mouth,” he said sar
donically, “doesn’t catch any flies.”
While in England Mr. Duke smoked
$5 cigars. This meant much to the
English public, because the cigars
that King Edward had smoked cost
only $2.65. Mr. Duke a]sQ gavg out
an interview while there, In which he
called the progressive spirit in a
country dangerous. A New York
Times correspondent had called
ostensibly not to talk about politics,
but to get a description of Mrs.
Duke’s gown; the Dukes had just
been presented at Court.
“I think,” sad James B., “that we
are going ahead fa?t enough.”
The Dukes were caught in London
by the war. Mr. Duke cabled franti
cally to Washington for the authori
ties to save him. His attorneys were
also instructed to help him, and they
telegraphed Washington that “the
tobacco industry in this country de
mands his life and services to save
it in the crisis caused by war.”
Washington was solicitous, but un
perturbed. “The story of Mr. Duke’s
disti^ss,” said a dispatch from that
center, “is considered remarkable.
He did not go into details.”
That Mr. Duke finally got back
safely, present history attests. He
was inconvenienced during the war,
because Mr. McAdoo refused to let
him use his private railroad car, on
the grounds of economy, but things
otherwise went sailing. Mr. Duke
financed some experimental nitro
gen-manufacturing plants for the
government, and was interested in
fitting out the merchant marine.
It is only in the last fortnight,
however, that Mr. Duke has stepped
back into the real limelight. United
Retail has now been absorbed by the
Tobacco Products Corporation, with
a total merged capitalization of $157,-
000,000. James B. Dixon, who will
officially head the merger, has been
an associate of Mr. Duke from boy
hood; he is the high priest. Mr.
Duke himself is the guiding spirit
who will work the miracles.
The influence that goes with Mr.
Duke’s name in the tobacco world is,
even in this day of hero worship and
public celebrities, a thing remarkable.
It only has to bw whispered—and
presto, one might have waved a magic
wand. He is regarded not only as the
founder of the industry but as its
super-genius. He is supposed to
work miracles and witchcraft.
What he intends to do with the
merger is superficially evident
enough. The Tobacco Products Cor
poration is one of the largest of the
manufacturers of cigarettes, smoking
tobacco and cigarette papers. The
United Retail Stores, controlling the
United Cigar Stores, is the largest
and most important factor in the
country in th§ retail selling of manu
factured tobacco. Pooling of profits
new and more economical methods of
distribution, and expansion of the
whole htwiness is indicated. The ar
rangement is, in a way, a system of
eliminating the middleman, thus en-
Wouldn’t Quit
Job For Million
Washington. — Attorney General
Daugherty vigorously spiked all ru
mors that he would resign from the
Cabinet now or in the near future.
As long as he has the backing of the
President, Mr. Daugherty expects to
continue at the Department of Jus
tice, ignoring the criticism which is
being leveled in his direction.
“I wouldn’t have given thirty cents
for the office of Attorney General,”
said Mr. Daugherty emphatically, as
he left the White House after a brief
conference with the President, “but
I wouldn’t surrender it for a million
dollars.”
The Attorney General sad he ex
pected when he accepted the Cabinet 1
post to be made the target of sertain ;
individuals and was prepared exactly
for the experience he is undergoing
at present.
abling the manufacturer to cut prices.
Smokers are wondering if they are
going to be the beneficiaries of a
price war. Cigarettes may even re
turn to ten cents a pack—good ones.
Miracles may happen. At least,
James Brodie Duke is back.
1-3 of Your Life
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Your comfort and rest depends upon the con-
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If it sags in the middle or is hard in spots you
spend 1-3 of your life in misery.
For 10 days we will re-condition your Mattress,
make it over as good as new for $3.90
A. Green & Son, Mattress Factory
Next to Rollins Fish Market Phone 256-W.
Work Called For and Delivered
SEND US YOUR JOB PRINTING
Here’s Where Its Made
Buy Ice Tickets!
The Antidote For Heat.
We have had printed for your convenience Ice Coupons in smaller
denominations. Its much cheaper and handier this way. Its a sure way
to save something every day.
Your Ice Man Has These Tickets.
Florence Ice & Fuel Company
O. G. WESTON, Manager.
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2nd Floor Skyscraper