Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1888-08-04
TRUSTS And THE LAW.
The Congressional Committee
Make Their Report.
An Arrangement Which Places Mon,
opolies Beyond the Iscach OF
Present Statutes.

The House Committee on Manufactures
submitted the following report concerning
tho trusts investigation, which was ordered
printed
Your committee has particularly directed
its inquiry into the methods OF and tho eX-
tent of the business done or controlled by
the sugar trusts and the Standard Oil trusts
and respectfully submit herewith the testl-
mony taken before it in relation to these two
trusts. III submitting this testimony your
committee desire to call tho attention of tho
House to tho form of organization OF these
two trusts. Both of them are organized
On substantially the same plan. From the
testimony it appears that there exists q GER
tain number OF corporations organized under
tho laws of the different States and subject
to their control; that these corporations have
issued their stock to various Individuals, and
that these individual stockholders have sur
rendered their stock to the trustees named
in the agreement creating these trusts and
accepted in lieu thereof certificates issued by
tho trustees named therein
Tho agreements provide that tho various
corporations whose stock is surrendered to
the trustees shall preserve their identity AMI
carry on their business. In the sugar trust
agreement the provision is that tho several
corporations shall maintain their separate
organizations and each shall carry on and
conduct its own business. In tho Standard
Oil trust agroement it IS provided that all
property real and PERSONAL assets and bust
ness shall be transferred to and vested IN the
said several companies. Tho duties OF the
trustees are restricted to the receipt of the
dividends declared by the various corpora
tions nm tho distribution OF tho aggregate
of them to the holders of the trusts certiti
Gates, pro rata, and to- holding aud voting
upon the stock If the corporation The trus-
toes in both cases upon the stand rs witnesses
specifically denied that the trustees rs such
ever do any other business than to receive
and distribute tliese dividends and exercise
the only other function given to them ny
tho trust agreements, that Is, TO hold the
stock of the various corporations and eXcr-
else the right OF stockholders in such corpora
tions.
This form of combination was obviously
devised for the purpose of relieving the trusts
and trustees from the charge OF any breach
of the conspiracy laws OF thu various States,
or of being combination to regulate or con-
troll the price of production of any COM
modify Hence they assert that the corporii-
tions themselves which control and regulate
the price OF commodities and the extent ofpro
duction and liavo tangb property remain
Wlpu UutlI OIHiillILlllDi iHlstNO tii't N''pisiN"
and not in combination with each other; that
the stockholders who owned only the stock
and by we'll settled legal rules had no legal
title in the properly of the corporations Ell
tered into the agreements and sold the stock
in tue corporations and excepted i'll paymen-
trusts certificates aud that the trustees no
ceive and hold only the stock of corporations
and have no legal title to any of the property
of the clrporations. and neither buy nor sell
ANYTHING nor combine with any one to Fix
prices or regulate production oil any conf
modify.
Your committee have dcemed it proper to
call attention TO this feature of these combi-
nations because it is believed that it will he
found that all trade combinations having
similar aims either have adopted this method
or speedily will do SO, and also because the
legislation which has been proposed to this
House and referred to your committee has
been directed against combinations 10 fix the
price or regulate the production of articl
of merchandise or commerce. 1t is plain
that the combination the testimony concern
ing which is herewith submitted haze been
Northumberland so rs to avoid it possible
the charge that the trust rs such or the trus-
tees in that capacity either fixed til, price or
regulated the pro auction OF any article Of
merchandise or commerce.