Tandsticksaktiebolaget*

Shrewd Ivar Kreuger has known how to dicker with sensitive governments, greedy governments, when the Swedish Match Trust wanted another monopoly (TIME, Oct. 1). A fat check here, a guarantee there, and competition has pleasantly evaporated. Thus it was that, last week, the match king of Sweden could look with satisfaction at every major match-consuming country of the world, except one.

The exception, of course, was the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics. From Moscow had issued orders for war with the Swedish Match Trust in the world's markets. And following the orders came inspired reports that the U.S.S.R. had enlisted both the Japanese trust and the Chinese syndicates as allies. And following the propaganda came Russian matches, in boxes, in crates, in carloads, flooding the markets of Europe.

Viewing these warlike moves, fearing lest some might think his company endangered, Matchmaker Kreuger last week spoke sharply, scornfully. Said he, through the Swedish International Press Bureau: "The Japanese Trust is our good friend. The Chinese syndicates do not exist. Russian matches are not good enough to compete with us in European markets."

Said he, through his own company: "The Soviets want to frighten us into a deal. They want us to buy the Russian monopoly with a loan to the U.S.S.R. We shall lend them no money and we will make no matches in Russia, even if the monopoly is handed us as a gift."

With this blast, Matchmaker Kreuger thought he had extinguished the flickering Soviet-Swedish match war.

*Swedish Match Co., Ltd., a $270,000,000 concern, which not only sells matches but also makes huge loans to needy governments.