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Show EXPERTS DISPUTE . CLAIMOFWITWESS Lumberman Testifies in Missouri Ouster Suit Investments Are Not Earning 5 Per Cent. JEFFERSON' CITY. Mo.. June 2S. Testimony Tes-timony this afternoon of John 3. White of Kansas City in the state's ouster suit against lumber companies alleged to he in a trust, disclosed that White's own companies had been Investigated by three experts for the department of commerce and labor. The claim made by the Kansas City lumber man that his investments were not earning: 5 per cent was disputed by the government experts, who said his estimate es-timate of profits was too low. This testimony was given after Mr! White had; identified letters written by him as president of the Southern Lumber-Manufacturers Lumber-Manufacturers assoslactlon to its secretary, secre-tary, George K. Smith. One letter relating relat-ing to price lists suggested that the secretary sec-retary furnish C. J. Schuster, a. St. Louis pirnter, witli price lists reflecting actual market conditions in order that the printed print-ed list would give correct Informatlon-Ito lumbermen. - The second letter identified was one In which he directed Secretary Smith to write to Herbert Knox Smith, commissioner commis-sioner of the federal bureau of corpora -tlonK. Inviting a Foarching investigation into tho methods of the Southern Lumber Manufacturers association. This, he said, was done and later he made a similar request of the commissioner commis-sioner regarding his own properties at Fisher. La. The experts assigned to the task took the company's books for twenty-one years to Washington for examination, ex-amination, he said. George K. Smith of St. Louis, secretary of the Yellow Pino Manufacturers association, asso-ciation, appeared at the hearing under orders or-ders of Special Commissioner Robert M. Reynolds, with his records and correspondence corre-spondence by which Assistant Attorney General Atkinson expects to prove tho lumber output was curtailed by a meeting meet-ing of manufacturers in 1905. The printed records of the meeting of the Southern Lumber Manufacturers association as-sociation at. Memphis in 1891 were introduced intro-duced by the state. In the- records was a telegram sent by George M. Griffin of Kansas City to J. B. White, which read: Hold stiff tho present list. No advance ad-vance advisable." Under cross-oaminatIon Mr. White ox-pressed ox-pressed the opinion that lumber manufac turers do not make- a profit of mdre than a per cent. He said the advance of 3S per rent in the price or lumber from 1005 to 1907 wa? d,"- ,0 Prosperous business conditions and that it was less than the advance on hogs, corn and other products. Speaking of curtailment he said-that 5 Per.',lt more Jumher was manufactured In 1004 than in 1903 and that curtailment curtail-ment was necessary. The price lists sent by the secretarv. he testified, were only advisory. |