FRIENDLY MESSAGES FOR THE MERCHANTS' ASSOCIATION Comments on the Contents of the Year Book Reveal Admiration for the Work Done by The Association Last Year-Welcomed by Diplomatic and Consular Officials Many additional congratulatory messages acknowledging The Merchants' Association's Year Book for 1920 are being received by The Association. Municipal Reference Library The Librarian of the Municipal Reference Library, Miss Rebecca B. Rankin: "We are very glad to obtain this material for the files of the Municipal Reference Library and take this occasion to express our appreciation of your gift." The Order Section of the New York State Library, by Mrs. Mary B. Brewster: "The work is a valuable one and will be useful in our reference section." The Hon. Anthony J. Griffin, Representative in Congress, from the Twentysecond District of New York: "I thank you for your kindness in sending me the Year Book of 1920 published by your Association, and beg to assure you that I appreciate it as a valuable addition to my library." Mr. W. R. Platt, Scott and Bowne: "It is a very interesting work, and we appreciate your sending same to us." "Of Unusual Value" The 1920 Year Book CONSULATE GENERAL OF GREECE New York Nov. 19, 1920. me. I really am appreciative of the au- Very truly yours, receipt of the Year Book of The Mer- Examined with Interest The Hon. Edward S. Walsh, State general completeness." Superintendent of Public Works: "The report seems to be a comprehensive one and contains a great deal of matter of unusual value." Attorney General Charles D. Newton: "I wish to thank you for a copy of The Mr. Daniel Lipsky, Secretary to the Association's Year Book for 1920 which President of the Manufacturers Trust I have looked over with a great deal of Company: "We take pleasure in ac- interest." knowledging receipt of your letter of the Mr. Herbert D. Brown, Chief of the 16th instant also the Year Book of 1920 United States Bureau of Efficiency: which is so splendidly gotten up and "Your Year Book will be a valuable adcontains such useful information. It dition to our library." Mr. Irwin Hayden, Managing Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce of Riverside, California: "In reply to your letter of October 15, we wish to state that a copy of The Association Year Book, 1920, has reached us and is on our table. We thank you for the same and assure you that we place great value on this book." "Extremely Valuable" Mr. F. S. Crum, Prudential Insurance Company of America, Newark: "Please accept our sincere thanks for your courtesy in favoring us with a copy of The Association's Year Book for 1920. This is an extremely valuable publication and we are very glad indeed to have it for the files of our library." Mr. A. S. Price, National Filter Cloth and Weaving Company, Brooklyn: "We acknowledge with thanks receipt of Year Book for 1920. The writer has not had time to cover the contents of this book thoroughly, but what we have gone into has proven very interesting." Valued in Canada Mr. H. C. Westoby, Treasurer of the Chamber of Commerce of Guelph, Province of Ontario, Canada: "Your publications are placed on file in our reading room, where they are valued by the Directors and members. We are very pleased to have them." Mr. M. S. Keller, President of American Motors, Incorporated: "The writer acknowledges, in behalf of American Motors, Incorporated, the receipt of the Year Book for 1920 of The Merchants' Association of New York, and takes pleasure in expressing will find a very valuable place in our The Hon. John Gabriel, Alderman for library as I know from past experience the Forty-eighth District; "I wish to his gratification upon the receipt of that we have occasion to refer to your take this means of acknowledging the same, and desires to add his humble Year Books many times in the course of receipt of The Association's Year Book compliment to the many you no doubt a year." for the present year, and express my have received with respect to its comMr. John R. Kirk, President of the sincerest thanks for same. With best prehensiveness in the details contained State Teachers College, Kirksville, Mis- wishes to the success of your Associa- therein." souri: "I desire to thank you very tion, and may you continue the same cordially for a copy of the 1920 Year activities in the future as you have in Book of The Merchants' Association of the past." Mr. Stanley H. Rose, Manager of Foreign Sales, The Barber Asphalt Paving Company: New York. Among other recent docu- Mr. George J. H. Follmer, Guaranty "This volume is particularly well prements in our library it will be highly Trust Company of New York: "I wish pared, and of extreme interest. I have serviceable to our departments of com- to thank you for the 1920 Year Book been particularly interested in the acmerce and political science and to stu- of The Merchants' Association of New tivities of your Foreign Trade Bureau, dents at large." York which I have received. It will which I know has done exceedingly good Mr. Richard O. Chittick, Executive give me much pleasure to read the re- work in furthering the export trade not Secretary of the Real Estate Board of ports of the activities of The Associa- only of New York but of the whole New York: "This is to acknowledge tion as I am greatly interested." | country." WILL WEIGH NEEDS OF ELLIS ISLAND Representative Good Promises to Consider the Situation as Disclosed by This Association INFORMATION IS APPRECIATED The Merchants' Association, which recently approved the report of its Committee on Immigration and Naturalization with regard to conditions at Ellis Island, has asked the House of Representatives to make suitable appropriation for the needs of the immigrant station there. . Letter to Representative Good In behalf of The Association, Mr. S. C. Mead, Secretary, wrote as follows to Representative James W. Good, Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations: "We understand that the House Committee on Appropriations is considering the advisability of an appropriation for the purpose of improving and enlarging facilities for examining and accommodating immigrants at Ellis Island. In this connection we wish to call your at received, relative to the facilities at Ellis steadily increased during the war collaterally with the expansion of our steel industry, with which it necessarily keeps "I thank you for sending me the in- pace. The use of by-product coke ovens, quarters there. formation contained in your letter, and by means of which the ammonia for- AGAINST MUSSEL SHOALS PROJECT why, under these conditions, a hydro electric governmental operated plant is not only needless but harmful to established industries are made clear by the pamphet." SECRETARIES COMING in the Offices of This Association This Association has felegraphed to New York Men Will Get Together Senator James W. Wadsworth, Jr., in protest against the allowance made by the Military Appropriations bill for developing the Mussel Shoals project as a plant for the production of nitrates by the Government. Telegram of Protest The telegram to Senator Wadsworth reads as follows: "This Association is strongly opposed tention to a recent investigation of con- to the item in the Military Appropriaditions at Ellis Island, made by The Merchants' Association's Committee on Immigration and Naturalization, which revealed the following facts: tion bill which contemplates the devel- duce nitrates for making explosives in ""The facilities for examining and accommodating incoming immigrants at Ellis Island should by no means be over- "We have hitherto carefully examined looked. Ellis Island receives more than the project for Government nitrate two-thirds of the total immigration to plants, and have found them to be unthe United States, yet its plant is necessary, wasteful, and destructive of woefully inadequate properly to care for important existing industries. "Investment by the Government of a these people. Sleeping quarters, for instance, meant for fifteen hundred are great many millions of dollars for the not infrequently made to accommodate purpose indicated would be pure waste, twice that number. The staff also is and highly inadvisable in view of the too small, and is therefore overworked, existing condition of the Nation's fiwith a consequent impairment of effi-nances." ciency. Although sufficient housing facilities and a larger staff of medical examiners are especially needed, a general enlargement and improvement of the entire equipment of the Island is obviously necessary, not only from the standpoint of efficiency but even of decency.' "In the light of these facts, The Merchants' Association of New York urgent ly requests that Congress make a suit The next conference meeting of secretaries of New York State Commercial Organizations will be held in the offices of The Merchants' Association on Friday, February 11. This date was selected in accordance with the desire expressed by the secretaries at the Chicago meeting that the midwinter conference should be held in conjunction with the conference of representatives of the New York State Chambers of Commerce which will take place on Thursday, February 10. The date of the Secretaries' Conference on the following day gives an opportunity to attend both these conferences and to spend Saturday and Sunday, February 12 and 13, in New York City, if desired. The Subcommittee on Program consists of Mr. Mayo Fesler, Secretary of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. Walter I. Willis, Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce of the Borough of Queens. The Subcommittee on Attendance consists of Mr. Charles T. Gwynne, Secretary of the Chamber of This telegram was supplemented by Commerce of the State of New York, the following letter: and Mr. Charles E. Reid, Secretary of The Bronx Board of Trade. Supplemented by Letter -0 CITY'S SHARE OF INCOME TAX State Treasury under the State Income "Following our telegram of Saturday last, we are enclosing herewith a pamphlet prepared by this Association in 1916, in which the reasons for our objection to a Government Hydroelectric Plant to produce nitrates are set forth in detail. The arguments then advanced are not only sound at the present time, but the conditions which warrant objection are even more forcible. Keep your file of "Greater New York" "Our capacity for the production of complete. You can get a special cover for "Your letter of the 18th instant is ammonia as a base for nitrates has it on application-price sixty-five cents. able appropriation to meet these needs." Will Have Consideration In reply to this letter Representative Good wrote as follows: The Merchants' Association THE MERCHANTS' ASSOCIATION HAS public expense and under public con WILLIAM FELLOWES MORGAN, President. S. C. MEAD, Secretary. HUGH LYNCH, Assistant to the Secretary. dustrial Bureau. JOHN H. LOVE; Graupner, Love and Lamprecht. J. CRAWFORD MCCREERY; The James McCreery JOHN W. NIX; President of John Nix and LEWIS E. PIERSON; Chairman of the Board, LEOPOLD PLAUT: President of the Black and J. LOUIS SCHAEFER; Vice-President and Treas- JAMES GILBERT WHITE: President of J. G. The President Morgan's annual message to The protest filed by The Merchants' the members of The Merchants' Associ- Association against the continuance of ation indicates the character of the work this gigantic waste of public funds that lies before the organization during should be heeded by Congress. the coming calendar year. The era of time has come to call a halt on reckless war activity is over. Domestic prob- expenditure. A saving of $10,000,000 lems of the first importance are press- can be made by ignoring the request of ing for attention. United and organized the Engineers for an appropriation for action is required for the solution of the coming year. these problems. Fortunately, The Association is now stronger in numbers than it has been at A DISCREDITABLE RECORD any previous time in its history. The The loss from fire in buildings and the gain in membership that has been re- maintenance of fire department and corded during the calendar year just water supply service costs the United closed proves the estimation in which States more than $2,000,000 a day. The Association is held by the business According to the Supervisor of the community which it serves. Although Surveying Department of the National the 6,700 names upon its membership Board of Fire Underwriters, 15,219 perrolls offer a record in which The Asso- sons were burned to death in this counciation may well take pride, there are try last year and 17,641 were seriously still hundreds of business houses which injured in fires. Of the dead and inare eligible for membership in The As-jured, 82 per cent were mothers and sociation. It is important that every children under school age and 92 per business enterprise capable of aiding the cent of the fires were caused by carelesswork which The Association is doing ness or neglect. should be included in its membership. In order to bring home to his hearers some idea of the waste caused by fire, the Supervisor pointed out that while more than 25,000,000 people are living Through its various Bureaus, The Association is carrying on from day to day a service which is of the highest importance to the City and to the City's in temporary quarters 889 homes are business interests. This work, valuable being burned up every day. No less than as it is, attracts comparatively little 65 per cent of the number of fires in this country occur in dwellings. attention because it is more or less rou- The following table shows the sums invested in this country during the last ten years for the construction of new buildings and the fire losses: President Morgan's words should be Year Value of New 445,549,500 1919. Fire Losses $269.000,775 1918. 317,014,385 1917. 1916. was The $242,201,600, for the production of nitrates at Mussel The average spent each year during ture. Meetings were held in the Assembly Room of The Merchants' Association during 1920 by the following: American Brick Manufacturers' Association American Acceptance Council merce National Association of Office Mana gers National Industrial Traffic League New York University NEW SECRETARY TAKES THE OATH Mr. Lyons and His Friends Hold Ceremony in Assembly Room of This Association SILVER SERVICE IS PRESENTED The new Secretary of State, the Hon. John J. Lyons, took the oath of office in the Assembly Room at the headquarters of The Merchants' Association last Tuesday before Judge Benjamin N. Cardozo The Assembly Oath of Office Secretary of State of the Court of Appeals. Olive Oil Importers Association Room was packed by the friends who came to witness the ceremony and who Paint, Oil and Varnish Club of New took advantage of the occasion to preYork Pearl Button Manufacturers Associa American Bar Association American Forestry Association American Institute of Banking American Olive Oil Importers tion Committee for Protection of Rights Conference Public Warehouses Depositors International Petroleum Electric Motor Dealers Shipper's Conference Committee Subcommittee re International Cham- United States Department of Agricul ture sent the new Secretary with a silver service. Led State Ticket Former Assemblyman Harry Kopp acted as Master of Ceremonies, and former Representative J. Van Vechten Olcott, made a speech in which he called attention to the fact that Mr. Lyons led the Republican State ticket. Miss Helen Varick Boswell, ViceChairman of the New York Republican County Committee, made a brief address in which she said that the women voters of the State had supported Mr. Lyons. Silver Service Presented The Hon. Samuel S. Koenig, President of the New York Republican County Committee, spoke briefly and Major 49th Infantry Post-American Legion George Brokaw Compton presented the MOTOR TRUCKS IN NEW YORK Erie Railroad Employees Association logues of American firms interested in 1915 Trucks Reg. in N.Y. State .110,000 97,346 92,979 55,402 34,653 23,288 14,864 9,000 7,606 There are approximately only 800,000 trucks in use throughout the United States, the 110,000 registered in New York State represent approximately oneninth of the total number. CHINA FIRMS NEED CORPORATION LAW This Association Urges Congress to Act Favorably Upon Bill Drawn by Mr. Dyer. "You will, no doubt, appreciate that TRACTION VOTES an incorporation act of this kind must be most exact in phraseology and word- "Your communication will be filed FEDERAL BASIS IS REQUIRED garding this proposed legislation." The Merchants' Association recently asked the appropriate Committees of Congress to make provision for Federal incorporation of firms doing business in China, as the privilege hitherto enjoyed of incorporating under the British law has been withdrawn. Supports Pending Bill The Association has sent the following letter to Representative A. J. Volstead, Chairman of the Judiciary Committee: "The Merchants' Association of New York desires to be recorded with the members of the Committee on Judiciary of the House of Representatives as cordially approving the principles enunciated in H. R. 7204, a bill providing for the incorporation of companies for Chinese trade. It is the belief of The Merchants' Association that the enactment of the measure in question will furnish valuable assistance to firms in the Orient which are often compelled to compete with houses conducted by nationals of other countries under conditions prejudicial to them. "The Association did not deem it wise to attempt to pass judgment upon all of the many details of the proposal as incorporated in H. R. 7204, but desires, rather, as stated above, to endorse the principles and conditions which the bill aims to make effective." Status of the Bill From Representative Dyer Representative Leonidas C. Dyer, a member of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House, author of the incorporation bill, writes as follows: "I received your letter of December 13th with reference to the Bill (H. R. 7204), providing for the incorporation of companies for Chinese trade. In reply, I beg to advise you that this bill has not as yet been reported by the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives. However, we have been working on it with diligence, and hope to accomplish something in this respect very soon. One of the difficuties we have had to meet has been the objection from the Treasury Department to the exempting of these proposed corporations from taxes. The Committee considering this bill in the House is the Judiciary Committee. This committee has no jurisdiction over revenue matters, and it feels that a bill should not be reported by it that exempts certain corporations from taxation without the approval of the Treasury Department, unless the Committee on Ways and Means of the House considers the question and is in favor of it. As soon as the Judiciary Committee has finished consideration of the bill I will then take up with the Committee on Ways and Means the taxation question, and try and have them present a separate bill upon that subject. "Last summer I went to the Orient to study this question and its needs. In reply to this communication, Rep-enclose you copy of some hearings taken resentative Volstead wrote as follows: while I was there. I appreciate the im"I am in receipt of your communi- portance and necessity of legislation cation of the 18th instant informing me along the lines of my bill, and I will be that The Merchants' Association of New glad to have the help of your AssociaYork has endorsed the underlying prin- tion." ciples found in H. R. 7204, a bill providing for the incorporation of certain companies engaged in foreign trade. 0 THE STATUE OF LIBERTY The Statue of Liberty, on Bedloe's IN AFFIRMATIVE This Association Casts Its Ten Ballots in National Chamber Railway Referendum EIGHT PROPOSALS ENDORSED The Merchants' Association has cast a favorable vote upon each of the eight proposals submitted by the Chamber of Commerce of the United States to its members. The Eight Proposals These proposals relate to local transportation matters, and are as follows: 1. Existing traction facilities should be conserved. 2. The attitude now taken toward street railway problems should be based upon the present and future needs of the community. 3. The attitude which is taken toward street railway problems should contemplate private ownership and operation. 4. Regulation should everywhere be instituted that will promptly follow changes in the situation of the companies rendering services of local transportation. 5. Provision should be made against the consequences of unfair competition. 6. All burdens unrelated to the service performed should be removed from street railways. "A special subcommittee of the Island, by the sculptor Bartholdi, stands in use than any other city in the world House committee on the judiciary has on a granite pedestal 155 feet in height and there are more trucks in service in had this measure under advisement for and reaches upward to a total height the State of New York than in any other some time, and is now engaged in re- of 306 feet. drafting this proposed legislation. As soon as the special subcommittee has completed its work the bill in its al Keep your file of "Greater New York" State of the Union. Notwithstanding that mechanical road transport in Great Britain antedated that in this country more than a decade, there are more mo tered form will again be taken up for complete. You can get a special cover for tor trucks in service in New York State consideration by the full committee. it on application-price sixty-five cents. than in all of the British Isles. |