The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-05-23
SUIT AGAINST THE BIG SIX is
IL SUSTAINED. Ns
INJUNCTION Will ISSUE
Judge G%rosscup Decides to Draw Up
Order After His Own Ideas
on the Subject.

Chicago, May 2O.-The temporary
injunction asked by the United States
government against the packers will
be issued by the court, but not in the
form in which the encouragement
asked. The packers made no defense
to the main issue after. it was
brought up today before Judge Gross
cup. although objection was made to
two or three details of the order re-
ferring to agreements for regulating
credits and sales to delinquent deal
ers. On those points the contention
of the packers was sustained, and
Judge Grosscup SAID he would draw
up a new order after his own ideas on
the subject. This will be issued short
ly.
The first engagement in the open
between the United States and the
packers, known al the "big SIX" be-
gan at 2 o'clock today when United
States District Attorney Bethea be-
fore Judge Grosscup in the United
States circuit court made a motion
for a temporary restraining order. All
that has gone before has been but
light diminishing, or the laying out
of lines of attack and defense.
AS soon as court was reconvened
after the noon recess Attorney Bethea
was given recognition. He asked the
privilege of calling the attention Of
the court to the case of the United
States of America VS.. Swift & Co.,
and others, for such is the legal title
of the now famous suit involving the
existence of the alleged beef trust.
He read the bill praying for a tenn
porary restraining order and to sus-
tain the petition, read from a great
bundle of affidavits. All of these al
legged the same conditions in the
meat trade which have been set forth
in the bill already published. each
taking up some particular phase of
the allegations.
When Mr.. Bethea had stated his
case Attorney John S. Miller, for the
defendant packers, read a brief re-
| ply, in which he said that the packers
in question do only 40 per cent of the
packing business of the country and
that this proportion could not control
the entire business. He asserted that
the prices of dressed meats were rela-
lively less today than they were at
other times. The desire of the pack
ers was, he said, to have a full and
impartial trial; if objections were
made at this time to the filing of the
petition and it were tried On ~ex-parte
afidavits, this would not be obtained.
Judge Grosscup spoke at length be-
fore giving his decision. He said
that the court would act no differently
because the government is on one
side and vast business interests on
the other. It would move slowly and
deliberately. The allegations of the
bill were reviewed at length and then
the objections raised by Attorney Mil
Ter to the order were referred to-. The
court was of the opinion that the con-
tention was well grounded, for any
arrangement that tended to defeat
"the dead beat was for the advance
ment of trade, In concluding, he said
he did not like the form of the order
of injunction submitted by the dis
trict attorney and that, while he
would have to issue it, since no OBJ
lection was raised by the defendants
against it's issue, he would draft a
new form for the Injunction.