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Show GARFIELD PUTS UNIT . Of cor DEALERS' PROFIT Order, Which Is Made Ef-fective Ef-fective Today, Is Expected to Reduce . Price to Consumers. YEAR 1915 IS TAKEN AS BASIS FOR RATE In No Case Shall Average Margin of July, 1917, Be Exceeded This Fall. WASHINGTON", Sept. 30. Government control over the coaj industry was made complete tonight by an order of Fuel Administrator Garfield limiting the pronto of retail coal and coke dealers throughout through-out the; country to a basis which is expected ex-pected to bring ,about an immediate reduction re-duction in prices to the consumer. , The order, effective tomorrow, directs that the retailers shall fix the prices so as to limit the gross margins -over cost to the average of such gross margins during dur-ing the year 1915, plus a maximum of 30 per cent of the 1915 margin, provided that in no case shall the- average margin of the month of July, this year, be exceeded. Loual committees appointed by the federal fed-eral fuel administrators in each state "will see to it that the dealers comply with the order ami the dealers themselves will be called upon to return sworn cost sheets showing the facts upon which they have based their prices. Conditions Considered. Dr. Garfield selected 1915 as a normal year because the coal shortage which resulted re-sulted in continued rises in prices did not begin until 1916. The additional 30 per cent is allowed to cover the increase in the retailers' cost of doirig business, which has increased substantially during the past two years. Prices already fixed by the government for coal at the mouth of the mine are near those charged In and, with tho jobbers' charge now limited to 25 cents a ton and the cost of transportation trans-portation not materially increased, the consumer, in every community, should be able to get coal of any description at approximately ap-proximately the price he paid in 1915. In other orders tonight the fuel administrator admin-istrator made the first revisions of bis recently fixed prices of coaJ at the mine. One makes changes on anthracite pea coal in the Pennsylvania field. Are Revised Upward. Another order revises upward the mine prices in certain bituminous districts in which unusual conditions exist, making the cost of production greater than the principal bituminous fields. The new prices for run of the mine coal in some of the districts follow: Pierce and King counties, Washington, $3.25; I-a Fayette, Ray, Clay, Platte and linn counties, Missouri, $3.15; Appanoose, Wayne. Boone and Webster counties, Iowa, $3:15; bituminous domestic coal In Watsenburg, Canon City, Routte. Garfield, Gunnison, Dura n go. Mesa, Pitkin, Montezuma, Monte-zuma, Delta, Montrose and Rio Blanca districts, Colorado, $2; bituminous steam coal in Trinidad district, Colorado, $2.75; lignite coal in the northern field and El Paso district, Colorado. $2. 45; Osage county. Kansas. $2.55; state of. Wyoming, Wyo-ming, $2.50, The Increases allowed are to meet figures fig-ures presented by mine owners, in many cases showing that the prices previously fixed would not allow a margin of profit above" the cost of production. An additional addi-tional 20 to -15 cents a ton lias been allowed al-lowed in most cases, including the Alabama Ala-bama field, where mine owners protested protest-ed that the government's prices would drive them out of business. Tonight's orders also provide that smithing and cannel coal may be sold at prevailing market prices until further notice. |