Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1875-10-20
JUDGE ORVIS' SCARCE TO
THE JURY IN THE CONSPIR-
ACY CASE.
Two-EDGED LAw-LAw FOR STRIKERS
OPERATORS ANp FoREsTALLERs.

Two-EDGED LAw-IAw FOR STRIKERS
OPERATORS AM FoREsrALLERs.
The trial of Sinoy and Parks, fol
conspiracy, was closed on Thursday
October 9TH, by the jury finding Parks
guilty and Siney not guilty. Parks
was sentenced TO undergo an imprison
ment OF one year at hard labor in the
Western Pcnitentiary, to pay fine Of
one dollar and costs Of prosecution
lie was escorted TO Pittsburgh on the
+ following Friday morning, by ex-Sher.
i'll Pie. Efforts are already being
made to secure his pardon,
We give below so much of the
charge of Judge Orvis us bears upon
the more important legal issues in.
volved
The first count in the indictment
charges the meeting and proceedings
at Goss Run as an "unlawful assembly" !"
which perpetrated unlawful, violent
and riotous acts, and is substantially
the same ofiensc charged as riot IN
thN HNNVhu Nouit' lnc tnlTu ana
fourth counts of this indictment are
substantially alike, and charge the de-
PENDANTS therein named, including
Siney and Parks, with having combined
and conspired to raise the price of min
ing coal in the Moshannon region from
fifty to sixty cents per ton, by prevent
ing men who were willing to mine coal
at fifty cents per ton from working by
means ofmenaces, intimidation, threats,
by force of numbers and with force and
arms. A conspiracy may be defined
to be combination or agreement of
two or more persons TO doan unlawful
act, or to do lawful act in an unlaw-
ful manner, or for an unlawful purpose.
II would be impossible for us to de-
tail to you all Of the various com
binations which have been here
tofore held to amount TO conspiracy.
All combinations TO do unlawful acts
or to do acts otherwise lawful by un-
lawful means are held to be indictable
as conspiracies. Other acts, which,
when done by an individual, are per-
fectly lawful, when done by combina-
tion Of two or more may become un-
lawful by reason OF the Injurious con-
sequences which follow such combina-
ton. The law upon the subject is so
well laid down BY the present Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court Of this
State, in the case Of the Morris Run
Coal Company VS.. the Barclay Coal
Company (lS p. f. Smith 1871, that
we will read you n portion of his
opinion. This was an action of debt
brought by the plaintiff against the
dcfendantupon an accepted draft. The
defense was that the draft had been
given in pursuance of a combination or
agreement between five coal companies,
the purpose of which was to regulate
the price of coal, which combination
was alleged to be unlawful, and the
draft therefore without legal considera-
ton. Judge Agnew says "rhe effects
produced on the public interests lead
to the consideration of another feature
Of great weight in determining the ille-
gality of the contract, to wit the COM
bination resorted to by these five com
panies. Singly, each might have sus-
pended deliveries and sales of coal to
suit its own interests, and might have
raised the price, even though that
might have been detrimental to the
public interest. There is a certain
freedom which must be allowed to
every one in the management of his
own affairs. When competition is left
free, individual error or folly will gen
orally find correction in the conduct
Of others. But here is combination
of all the companies operating in the
Blossburg and Barclay mining regions,
and controlling their entire production.
They have combined together to gov.
ern the supply and the price of coal in
all the markets from the Hudson to
the Mississippi rivers, and from Penn
sylyania to the lakes. This combina.
ton has a power in its confcderated
form which no individual action con-
fcrs. The public interest must sue.
cumb TO il, for it has left no competi- |
tion free to correct lis balefll influence
When The supply of coal il suspended
the demand for Il becomes mbortunate
and prices must rise or if the supply
goes forward the price fixed by The
coniederates must accompany it. The
domestic hearth, the furnaces of the
iron master, and the fires of the manu-.
iacturer, all feel the restraint, while
many dependent hands are paralyzed
and hungry mouths are stinted. The
influence Of lack of supply or the rise
in the price of an article Of such prime
necessity cannot be measured. II per-
meates the entire mass Of the com
munity and leaves few of its members
untouched by its whitening blight
Such combination is more than
contract, il is an oflensc. / take il, |
said Gibson, j., combination is Grim.
inal whenever the act TO be done has
necessary tendency to prejudice the
public or to oppress individuals by un-
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