Mergers, Acquisition

Zonite Products Co. makes antiseptic germicide, advertises its use with disarming frankness. Last week Zonite directors decided to purchase controlling interest in the Agmel Corporation, whose therapeutic products are derived from aguamiel, the sap of the Mexican maguey plant. President Ellery W. Mann of Zonite becomes president of Agmel.

General Motors Corp. ("A family of products & people") last week made arrangements to enter another industrial field. The new product will be storage batteries, to be made in Muncie, Ind., in the manufacturing plant bought last week from Durant Motors.

In Philadelphia, the Franklin Fourth Street Bank, and the Philadelphia-Girard National Bank are the largest banking institutions. Last week they announced their intention of merging, to form a bank with resources of $350,000,000. "The consolidation will add largely to the financial prestige of the City and State," explained Chairman of the Executive Committee Joseph Wayne Jr. and President Edward F. Shanbacker.

Rumors of a $600,000,000 merger involving the Baldwin Locomotive, Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing, Westinghouse Air Brake, American Steel Foundries, American Rolling Mills and Standard Steel Car Companies were rife in Wall Street last week. Arthur W. Cutten, Chicago grain speculator and Manhattan stock market operator, was reported to have drawn up a plan with the Fisher brothers (Charles T., Fred J., Lawrence P. & William A., Detroit capitalists of Fisher Body fame), for a holding company into which the stockholdings of these recently successful investors would be pooled. A community of interest between six of the most prominent railway equipment companies in the U. S. would result.

Giuseppe Cosulich, U. S. agent for the Cosulich Line, Italian shipping concern, last week confirmed reports of the purchase by his family of control of the Lloyd Triestino Puglia Line, the Maritime Italiana Line and one of the two largest shipyards in Italy. This acquisition makes the Cosulich Line the largest Italian shipping firm, with a fleet of 105 ocean-going vessels, aggregating 460,000 gross tons, operating to and fro between Italy and North America, South America, the Near East, Egypt, India, Japan, and China.