The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1902-05-23

| corporations not common carriers, which
this defendant might consider beneficial
to acquire. This defendant was not
| formed as scheme or device to evade
the act Of congress known as the .''antt-
trust act" or any other law whatever,
but solely for the purposes hereinbefore
| stated. 4eS
Not Restrain Competition.
This defendant was not formed, nor
did any of those concerned in it's forma-
tion. nor any of those who sold their
| shares of stock to it, have any purpose
| or intention to restrain trade. or COM
merce. or to lessen competition between
said railway companies or to smonopo-
lie traffic in any manner whatever; nor
can any such results follow from the
formation or operation of this defen-
dant. In point Of fact, since the argani-
cation of this defendant, rates on the
defendant railway companies lines, in
Guiding rates to and from points COM
mon to both, have voluntarily been so
reduced as to decrease their earnings
oy upwards OF million dollars an
nually. For all Interstate commerce
on the lines of either the defendant rail-
way companies, except traffic beginning
and ending on their own lines, respec-
lively. the rates are fixed by joint tariffs
with connecting lines. In respect to all
companies has ever had, or can have
any independent. rate-makine power or
| control Of traffic or rates. AL Joint
tariffs with other companies to or from
points common to the lines of the defen-
dart railway companies have always
been, and necessarily must be. the same,
whether the traffic Is carried by one or
| the other Of said companies. The total
amount of all other interstate traffic
| that is. traffic between common points
| on the two roads. which is not competi-
/ tive both as to rates and equally of SER
vice with other carriers having equal
| rate-making power with them, is less
than 2 per cent of the total interstate
traffic of the two companies.
| The sale and transfer Of property
whether in the form of shares of cor
! porate stock or otherwise, has never
been adjudged to be, and is not. in viola
ton OF the act of congress Of July 9,
| 1880, known as the antitrust act"
This defendant is not a railroad COM
| pany, and it has no power to operate or
manage railways. or make or control
rates of transportation, nor to monopolize
| or restrain traffic of any kind. So far
from intending to violate any provision
| of said act of congress, the persons who
were concerned, in organizing this de-
PENDANT and those who have sold their
shares to it, had every reason to believe
and did believe, that such sales were not
IN any way in contrayention of that act.
In common with the general public, they
were aware that during the eleven years
since the passing of that act, in many
instances, the stock of competing rail-
| way company has been acquired by its
| competitor or the shareholders thereof;
| without objection from any branch of
| principal railways doing business through
| out the country. This has been done
without objection from any branch of
| the government of the United States, and
has invariably proven beneficial to the
railway companies concerned and to
| the public; and those making sales of
stock to this defendant had no reason to
believe that such sales were open to any
legal objection or question Whatever.
Not te Control Rates.
| This defendant was not organized for
the purpose of acquiring a majority of the
! stock of either the Great Northern or
| the Northern Pacific company, but merely
| to purchase the stock of those who
| wished to sell, as above stated; and was
| not organized for the purpose of controll-
| ing railway rates in the slightest de-
| gree. and has not had and cannot have.
! any such effect. The transactions referred
| to in the petition have consisted in the
| organization of a lawful corporation, and
| the purchase of property by it. All acts
| done in relation to the organization of
this defendant and in the conduct of it's
| business have been expressly authorized
| by law, and have had no effect whatever
! to restrain trade or commerce among the
several states or with foreign nations. If
| these lawful transactions should hereafter
| have any effect to restrain trade or COM
| merce among the several states or with
| foreign nations (Which is hereby denied),
| that effect would be merely indirect re-
| mote, incidental and collateral, and not
| intended and as nothing compared with the
| great expansion Of the volume of inter-
state and international commerce which
| was itnended, and which this defendant
believes is destined to result from the en-
| terprise of the two railway companies,
| that eliminated in the purchase of the
| Burlington stock.
And this defendant says:
/. The ANTITRUST" act was not in
tended to prevent or defeat an enterprise
in aid of a great competitive interstate
and international commerce, merely be-
| cause such enterprise may carry with il
the possibility of incidental restraint upor
some commerce, trifiing both as respects
territory and volume.
| 2. Nor was the act intended to limit
the power of the several states to create
corporations define their purposes, fis
the amount of their capital, and deter
mine who may buy, own and sell theil
stock.
3. Otherwise construed, the act would
be unconstitutional, because:
The power to regulate commerce will
foreign nations and among the states
does not give congress the power to reg
ulate any of the matters above mentioned
in respect to corporations created by tn
states; and because
Persons may not be derived Of thei
property without due process of law. b.
taking from them the right to sell it, a
their interest may suggest.
There Is defect of necessary partie
defendant, because, as already set forth
r the persons who made sales of stock o
the said railway companies to this de
f PENDANT were numerous, exceeding NOR
e than 1900 in number, and few Of Their
had any connection whatever in the plan
e ming or forming of this defendant, and 1
8 their absence from this litigation no de
8 cree can be made affecting their right
n | in the premises.
r And this defendant denies all and a,
: manner of unlawful combination an
d confederacy wherewith it is by the sal
: petition charged, without this, that
8 there Is any other matter, cause or thin
o in the petition contained material or nee
: essary for this defendant to make answe
r unto, and not herein or hereby well an
y sufficiently answered, confessed, ira,
r ersed, and avoided or denied the same
K not true to the knowledge or belief Of th
t. defendant; all of which matters an
IS things this defendant is ready and will
/ ing to aver. maintain and prove as tn
D honora h1a co,Irt shall direct and h,1mhl