El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-04-21
ANTI TRUST BILL
The Dallas Resolutions Against the
Bill,

The Dallas Resolutions Against Inc
The committee OF the citizens mass
meeting, appointed yesterday to draft
suitable resolutions condening the pro-
posed so-cHlled antitrust law, says
Wednesdays Dallas News, held u meet
| ing yesterday afternoon at the Com
mercial club rooms and discussed the
terms of the resolutions. The docu-
ment, however, was not put in form at
that sittI1g of the committee, but will
be read to the mass-meeting this morn
ing after the signatures OF the COM
mittee are attached. The document
as drawn by Mr., Moroney of the COM
mittee was furnished to The News by
that gentlemen last night, the consen
of the committee having been previous
ly obtained. The full text of the re-
solutions as they will be offered to she
committee this morning is as follows:
| Whereas, there has been introduced
in the legislature of Texas bill SUBJ
stantially adopting what is known as
the Arkansas antitrust law, and the
citizens of Dallas, in common with the
citizens of the entire state, are pro-
foundly convinced that the occasion
warrants and demands q prompt, clear
and earnest expression OF their opinion
of such measure; and.
Whereas at large and representatl-
We mass-meeting of the citizens of
Dallas, and after full discussion of said
| measure. 1t was unanimously resolved
| that said bill should be defeated, and
| that appropriate resolutions should be
prepared and passed expressing the
substantially unanimous sentiment OF
this community on this question;t here-
fore be it
Resolved by the citizens of the city
of Dallas. in mass-meeting assembled,
that said so-called antitrust law
should not be enacted, for the
following reasons among many
others:
1. The bill is, and is admitted by it's
authors to be, the most drastic and
has ever been enacted. The public
have had no opportunity to carefully
consider the measure as it should be
considered, there has been no general
demand for any such law, nor any ex-
pectation that any such law would be
passed. It is unreasonable to expect
that the bill, introduced near the end
of the session, can or will receive from
the members sOf the legislature that
careful, unbiased and judicial conside-
ration that every important statute
should receive before being enacted in
to law.
2. The bill seems to be specially
aimed at insurance companies, while
broad enough in it's terms to embrace
every class of business. The insurance
business Ia governed by conditions and
principles as distinct and peculiar as
the railroad business, and whenever
there has been useful insurance
legislation it has been treated as a
separate subject.
3. The immediate effect of the law
would doubtless be to drive all or near
IL al &ha los Hp~<Sv,
the state, thus striking fatal blow at
the principal basis OF public and pri-
vate credit, and exposinfi all perish
able property in Texas to danger of
loss without possible indemnity. This |
would destroy credit based on in
surance, drive commerce from the |
state. and be of incaIculable injury in |
many other ways.
4. The real penalties of the law
would fall principally on the innocent
and helpless. The law would drive
the control of business into the hands
Of THOSE who are willing to assume the
risks Of the law, and take their chances
Of esdaping, evading or defeating it,
thus bringing the respect for the law
INTO general disrepute. "Underground
ia all we would have.
81 We recognize fully the evils of
trusts, and the necessity for correcting
'ueh evils, but the problem is one of
enormous difficulty, and its correct
'olution will never be reached by hasty
'r passionate legislation, which makes
10 attempt to discriminate between
What is right and what is wrong, be-
ween what is necessary and what ia
between what is reason
bile and what is unreasonable and
which Furnishes alike the innocent and
BE guilty.
6. The proposed law, by the enor-
nous fees provided for prosecuting Of
GERS. offers an unprecedented prem
lm on harassing and speculative liti-
alton.
Resolved, that a copy of the above
esolutions be forwarded to the senator
nd each of the representatives from
'allas county, and that they be earn.
silly requested to present the same to
ne senate and house of representatives,
nd use every honorable effort to defeat
ne passage of said bill.