Aluminum

Suddenly, a fortnight ago, the word "aluminum" burst into the headlines. The New York World was the first to put it there, whether simply as a brilliant idea or because it had advance knowledge that the word would soon get there. It was not scientific interest in the light and very useful metal which elevated it to the headlines; it was its connection with the name of Mellon, for the Mellons, headed by Andrew W., Secretary of the Treasury, have long been the leading factors in the great Aluminum Co. of America, and posting aluminum in the headlines was the signal of an attack on the Secretary of the Treasury.

Aluminum. The story of the political fight which opened last week really begins in the history of the metal. Aluminum, or aluminium as it is scientifically known, is a comparatively common element. It makes up about 7.28% of the earth (exclusive of the unknown interior).* It is exceedingly useful because it is malleable (not brittle), does not rust and only slightly tarnishes, and is very light, only about a third as heavy as iron. None the less it was not really isolated as a metal until 1828, the reason being that it is comparatively difficult to separate from the other elements with which it is commonly compounded, as with silica in clay. The result was that aluminum attained no great use because of its excessive cost, until an electrolytic method of obtaining it from a special mineral, bauxite, was discovered in 1886. That made aluminum a commercial possibility on a large scale. The realizing of that sudden possibility made fortunes for those in the aluminum business. It meant the growth of the Aluminum Co. of America from a capital of $1,810,000 in 1888 to $111,500,000 today.

History of the Trouble. In June, 1912, the U. S. Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania handed down, with consent of the Aluminum Co. of America, a decree forbidding that company to continue certain practices which were considered monopolistic in tendency. In Jan., 1922, the Senate ordered the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the Aluminum Co. to see whether it was a monopoly. In Oct., 1924, the Trade Commission made a report declaring that the Aluminum Co. had several times violated the Court decree of 1912. In Jan., 1925, the Attorney General (then Harlan F. Stone, now Associate Justice of the Supreme Court) declared in a letter to the Trade Commission: "It is apparent, therefore, that during the time covered by your report the Aluminum Co. of America violated several provisions of the decree; that with respect to some of the practices complained of they were so frequent and long continued that a fair inference is that the company either was indifferent to the provisions of the decree or knowingly intended that its provisions should be disregarded with a view to suppressing competition in the aluminum industry." But he pointed out that what the Trade Commission had gathered went only to the year 1922. Under the law, to prosecute the company for contempt of Court in violating the decree, it was necessary to begin action within a year of the time the alleged offense was committed. The Attorney General announced that he would start an investigation to find evidence of violations of the decree which were less than a year old.

Then a curious thing happened. The Trade Commission, after inviting the Attorney General to examine its evidence, refused him permission to use any of the matter which it had been given directly by the Aluminum Co., contending that information voluntarily given was privileged and should not be used in an attack upon the giver.

The scene now shifts to a short time ago, Jan. 1, 1926, when the New York World announced that it was about to begin a series of articles exposing the Aluminum Trust. The night before the World's series was scheduled to begin, the Department of Justice issued an announcement that its investigation of the Aluminum Co. would be completed in about three weeks, but that so far no violations of the Court decree or other illegal acts by the Aluminum Co. had been discovered--that is, that no recent violation of the law had been found. Naturally, the World made the most of this statement, declaring that the Department of Justice was trying to whitewash the Aluminum Co. in advance of its exposure by the World.

In Congress. Last week the attack was shifted to the floor of Congress. Senator Walsh of Montana, Democrat, he who conducted the investigation of the Naval oil leases, produced two resolutions:

1) For an investigation by the Judiciary Committee to see whether the Department of Justice had diligently prosecuted its investigation of the Aluminum Co.

2) To inquire of the Attorney General whether in his opinion the Trade Commission was within its legal rights in refusing access to the evidence given it by the Aluminum Co., and if not, what steps he was taking about it.

Senator Walsh asked immediate consideration of the resolutions. Senator Reed of Pennsylvania blocked consideration momentarily but next day announced that he had consulted with the "officials interested" and they were "all heartily in favor of it." So the resolutions were passed at once without opposition.

In the House two resolutions were proposed, one by Representative Oldfield, Democrat from Arkansas, the other by Representative Frear, insurgent Republican from Wisconsin, both proposing wide open investigations of the Aluminum Co. But no immediate action was taken.

The Potentialities. There is small doubt that the investigation authorized and other proposed investigations are designed as an attack, or at least reconnaissance for an attack, on the Coolidge Administration through its "nearest and dearest," Secretary Mellon. It is calculated that, if the Aluminum Co. can be given a black eye, Andrew Mellon, one of its large stock-holders and former directors, will be equally injured and through him, the Administration.

* As compared with iron 4.12%, silicon 26.03%, oxygen 49.85%, calcium 3.18%, sodium 2.33%, hydrogen .97%, carbon .19%.