Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-03-11
The Papers in the Anti
Merger Proceedings
at St. Paul.
SIDE OF GOVERNMENT
Is Set Forth Fully
Against Railroad
Combination.

st. Paul, March 11.-By direction of
the attorney general of the United
States a bill was filed at st. Paul last
evening in the circuit court of the
United States for the district Of Min
nesota in the case of the United
States, complainant, against the
Northern Securities company, the
Great Northern Railway company,
the Northern Pacific Railway COM
pany and others, defendants, TO test
the legality of the alleged combina-
tion of merger of the two roads and
others named in the bill. The action
is Drought under the act of July ..
1890. known as the Sherman anti
trust act.
After reciting the fact that the
Northern Securities company is a cor
poration organized under the laws of
the state of New Jersey; that the
Great Northern railroad was organ
lied under the laws of the state of
Minnesota, and the Northern Pacific
railroad under the laws OF Wisconsin,
and that the two last named COM
panies are common carriers, doing an
companies at and prior to the doing
of the acts complained of. owned and
operated two separate, Independent,
parellel and competing lines of rail
way aggregating over $500 miles in
length, the petition goes on TO say
that they ''were the. only transcon-
tinental lines of railway extending
across the northern tier of states
west of the great lakes, from the
great lakes and the Mississippi river
TO the Pacific ocean and were then
engaged in active competition with
one another for freight and passen-
ger traffic among the several states
of the United States and between
such states and foreign countries, |
each system connecting at its east
crn terminals. not on;y with lines of
railway, but with lake and river
steamers to other states. and to for
eign countries. and at its western |
terminals with sea-goinG vessels tc |
other states, territories and posses
sions of the United States and to
foreign countries.
Attempt at Consolidation.
That prior to the year 1898 the |
Northern Pacific system was owned |
and operated by the Northern Pa |
cific Railroad company, corporation |
organized under certain acts of con-
grcss; that during that year the |
company became insulvcnt and was
placed in the hands of receiver. |
While in this condition. awaiting fore
closure and sale, an arrangement was
entered into between a majority of |
the bondholders of the Northern Pa
citic Railway company and the Great |
Northern Railway company for n
virtual consolidation of the two and |
placing the control of the Northern
Pacific system in the hands of the |
Great Northern. This arrangement |
the sale under fore
closure of the Northern Pacific com
Dany to committee of bondholders
who should organize n new corpor
alton to be known as the Northern
Pacific Railway company. One half |
of the capital stock OF the new COM
pany was turned over to the Great |
company which in turn was
to guarantee the bonds of the North
crn Pacific Railway company.
'The carrying out of this arrange
ment," says the petition, was de-
feated by the decision of the United |
States supreme court i'm the case of |
PearsalI against the Great Northern |
Railway company which was decided |
March 80, 1896, in which it was held |
that the practical effect would be |
the consolidation of two parallel and |
lines of railway. and the /
giving to the defendant. the Great |
Northern Railway Company, a mon
opoly of all traffic in the northern |
half of the state of Minnesota, as /
well as of all transcontinental traf- |
fic north of the line of the Union Pa
cific. to the detriment of the public |
and in violation of the laws of the |
state of'Minnesota.
Burlington Stock Bought.
early in the year 1901 the de-
PENDANTS, the Great Northern and |
Northern Pacific Railway companies, |
in contemplation Of the ultimate
placing of the Great Northern and |
Northern Pacific systems under a
source of control. united in
the purchase of the total capital |
stock of the Chicago, Burli, on &
Quincy Railway company of Illinois,
giving the joint bonds of the Great
Continued on Page Three