The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-05-06
Northern Securities Company An
swers Suit Brought by Attor-
ney General Knox.
DENIES CONSPIRACY CHARGE.
Enterprise, 1t Is Asserted, ain Aid
of Great Competitive Inter
state and international
Commerce.

st. Paul. MINI, May 5.-"An enterprise
in aid Of great competitive interstate and
| international commerce" is the description
Of the Northern Securities Company given
| in the answer filed by the attorneys for
that corporation in the suit brought by At
torney General +. c. Knox on behalf of the
United States to enjoin the so-called merger
~ the Northern Pacific and Great Northern
-d.lways.
This answer was filed late this afternoon
in the United States Circuit Court in this
city. and at the same time individual an
swers were filed by James J. Hill, William
P. Cl0ugh. D. Willis James. John 5. Ken
nedy. George +. Baker and the Great North
ern Railway and by !. Pierpont Morgan,
Robert Bacon. Daniel S. Lamont and the
Northern Pacific Railway. The various pa
pers FOLLOW the same lines.
The answer OF the Northern Securities
Company is divided into TWO parts. The
first part is largely a denial of The petition
as respecting any charge OF conspiracy and
as respecting the purposes Of the oargniza-
tion Of the SECURITIES Company. Instead of
owning majority Of the snares of the Great
Northern and Northern fGculc companies,
II is stated that those who are Interested in
the Cr-anIZatlOn OF the Securities Company
aid not own within S2s.NJ.rgJ OF a majority
OF The Great Northern shares and little
more than One-quarter OF the Northern IA
This part of the answer also states that
the Securities Company has acquired by
transfer on the Great Northern books about
nve-Iwelitns of that CoE-pany's stock. has
negotiated Tor ABOUT foUr-twelftns OF the
total OF such stock. which has not been
transferred and as to wGlcn il has at pres
eHt no voting power. ana has paid on dc-
count OF Great Northern and Northern Pa
CHIC shares purchaser over ~, ,UDJUJp in cash.
Purchase of the Burlington.
IN the second part OF The answer the
purchase OF the chicago. Burlington and
quincy Railroad Company is taken up. AT
trnuOn Is called TO the sparSeIy seIIIed or
unsettled nature or the country through
Wnlcn the Great Northern lines pass; the
asunGance OF raw material TO re nauleI a.
a low mileage rate, the great timber wealth
III the faclnc Northwest, and the necessity
or return load for the cars taking this
timber to the prairie states; the develop
ment OF trade with Eastern Asia as means
of securing such return .OadS amt the es-
tabllshment OF a connecting steamship line
for that purpose.
II is stated that "Hn the interstate and
international commerce which the Great
Northern Company has thus built up IL
competes both in this country and on the
ocean with the other transcOntinentai lines
QncIuding the Canadian PaClEc) and at the
oriental ports it competes for the COM
merce OF the world. Its rates are and must
be made in competition with the rates OF
nal The policy thus followed by the Great
Northern Company in building up an in
ternatlonal ana thereby an interstate COM
mcrCe mas been followed by the Northern
PacIric Company since Its reorganization in
1895"