Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1896-06-17
A TRUST ATTACKED.
Judge Burnett Asked to Dissolve
the National Manufacture
ing Company,

hartford Wis, June 13.-[Special. i
On application of Attorney General Myl-
rea, Judge Burnell of Oshkosh, who is
now here, granted an injunctional ordc
restraining the National Manufacture
company, commonly known as the sa1
and door trust, from doing business,
pending a hearing upon a motion to dis
solve the corporation. The suit is
brought in the circuit court OF w lnne-
bagO county.
The attorney general charges that the
company was not organized to carry on
a legitimate business, but simply for the
purpose of controlling the sash, door and
blind trade and creating by its operations
a lumber trust, extending over the states
of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan,
Iowa, Missouri, Ohio and Kansas.
Judge BurnelIs Order.
The order of Judge Burnell is as fol-
lows:
1t is ordered, that until the further order
of this court the defendant, the National
Manufacturing company, Its officers, d1rec-
tors, agents and servants be and are here
by restrained and enjoined from taking any
steps or proceedings under the contract be-
tween the National Manufacturing COM
pany and its various stockholders, as set
forth in said complaint; and from in any
manner fixing the prices at which the arti-
Giles mentioned in said complaint shall be
poration, as provided in said agreement;
and from cancelling the certificates of stock
of any of said members Of SAID corporation POI
Of any of such members in case of the fali-
ure Of any of such mebers to comply with
the terms of said agreement or in case any
of such members sell any of said articles at
prices less than those fixed by SAID board
of directors. or IN case any OF sucn mem
berS have heretofore sold any OF SAID artl-
cles at prices less than those fixed by said
board of directors.
All of the sash, door and blind manu-
facturers in Oshkosh and in the states
mentioned doing other than purely
local business, are said to be members
of the trust. which since its organization
has ruled the market, and subjected its
members to heavy fine in case of vio
lation of the alleged contracts. Every
act of the company since its organiZa-
ton is alleged by the attorney general
to have been a violation of the law.
The complaint sets. forth the incOrpOra-
ton of the company on January -,
1895, with a capital stock of 100000.
The pretended purpose and object of
the incOrDoratiOn was the manufacture
ing and dealing in lumber, with principal
offices in Oshkosh. According to Tie at
torney general, however, the real pur-
pose and object of the incorporation was
1.-THE forming and maintaining of a com
bination among the manufacturers and
dealers in SaSheS, doors, blinds ana Mill
work. and for the purpose of maintain
ing high and fictitious prices of said ar
ticles, and for the purpose OF injurfng
the business of such dealers in said ar
ticleS as were not members of said COM
binatiOn. and for the purpose Of arbi-
trarily fixing and maintaining prices of
said articles, and for the purpose of pre-
venting the fixing and determining of
such prices by the natural laws of COM
petition and supply and demand, and for
of
facturers and dealers from selling at Il
less price than that arbitrarily fixed by
said combination, and for the purpose
of preventing such dealers as were not
members of said combination from buy
ing such articles at as low nrice as
those who were members of said c0mbi-
nation, or at prices which would be fixed
by the natural laws of supply and de-
mand."
A Fund Subscribed.
Pursuant to these purposes and OBJ
jectS, the complaint charges, subScrip-
tions were obtained from 4 large ma
jority of all the manufacturers and
dealers in sashes, doors, blinds and mill
work in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Mich-
gan, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Ohio and
Kansas, the great majority of the sub
scriptions being for $1,000. After the
organization was completed, officers
were elected, and then it is charged the
corporation made an agreement with
each of its members wherein the cor
poratiOn agreed through the board of
directors, to tx and establish prices,
discounts, terms and conditions of sale
for sashes, doors, blinds, holdings, etc,
as listed In the universal sash, door aid
blind list of the Northwest. This is a
price list of articles in general use in
the trade and among the members of the
corporation. The corporation further
agreed, the complaint charges, to notify
Il IL
On the other hand, the members Of the
company, it is charged, agreed not to sell
under any of the prices so fixed and as
an evidence of good faith made a deposit
of stock with G. w. Davis of Oshkosh.
In case of violations this stock, it is al
legged, was to be destroyed and the mep-
bers compelled to- make new contribu-
tions within thirty days
The operation Of the agreement is
charged by the complaint, the attorney
general asserting that the prices fixed
by the trust were higher than would
have resulted from free and open cOmpe-
tltlOn and from the operation of the
laws of supply and demand, and that
the members would have been able to
sell at lower prices but for the existence
of the corporation and the contract and
forfeit The operations of the company
are being continued, the complaint
charges, and will continue unless it's
franchise is revoked, resulting in re-
straint of trade, in preventing free and
open competition and azing it difficult
and impossible for dealers who are not
members of the trust to buy at prices
to enable them to sell at a fair profit
The contract between the company and
IT'S members does not expire by limita-
ton until the year 1900. The complaint
asserts that all the time the company
has been In existence, it has been and
is engaged in no business whatever ex-
cept in carrying out the purposes of the
trust. From time to time, the COM
plant says, members have been made
subject to the forfeiture, which is strict
ly enforced. For these reasons the APP
pointment of receiver is asked to wind
up the affairs of the corporation and it's
franchises revoked.