The San Francisco call., 1903-01-24
THE ANTITRUST BILL.


substantially as already discussed in The Call
1t is said that the principal objection to it
is its provision for publicity There is valid reason
against legal enforcement OF publicity OF the neces-
sary condolences of business, which when exposed
furnish information for rivals, either home foreign.
But it is very doubtful whether this under
the proposed law
The first section of the bill provides for publicity.
A close examination of it discoses the fact that
nothing required that does not belong to the public
The United States Steel Corporation the largest OF
all the trusts, in its annual report to its 10000
stockholders furnishes just the information required
by the bill 1t reports the number of corporations
incorporated in its name the value OF their several
properties, the price at which they taken over
the productive capacity OF each and their aggregate
earning power and the gross and proceeds OF
the annual business The bill only provides further
that the trusts shall cite the laws under which they
organized and their rules and regulations and
explanation OF their preferred and common stock
with the legal basis and privileges OF each.
1t is quite difficult conceive that this proper
publicity dscoses anything that may serve our foreign
rivals. A trust may patents or secret pro-
cesses which economize its production, or it may
pursue methods of business made possible by or
ganization which enable it to enter foreign markets
and extend our export trade, but long these do
include preferential freight and unlawful re-
bates their disclosure is not compulsory under the
law 1t seems to provide needed remedies at every
point where complaint has lodged against the policy
of these great business combinations and to be cal
culated to preserve in them whatever is good while
purging them of what is bad.
The powers of the Interstate Commerce Com
mission are enriched by this BILL and its capacity to
itS the is finite
declared Section is of especial utility and import
ance. 1t provides That no corporation engaged
in the production manufacture or sale of any article
OF commerce. violating any OF the provisions of sec
ton of this act or attempting to monopolize OF
control the production, manufacture or sale thereo
in any particular locality by discriminating in prices
by giving special privileges or rebates or other
wise in order to destroy competition therein in sucE
locality shall use either directly or indirectly, any
of the facilities instrumentalities of interstate com
merce in any way engage in interstate commerce
for the purpose OF aiding or facilitating either di
recty or indirectly, such production, manufacture Of
sale with such intent; shall any other person o.
corporation use any of the facilities or insrumen
talties OF interstate commerce. in any way engage
in interstate commerce, in buying, selling or dspos
ing of any such article of commerce for the purpos
of enabling such first mentioned corporation to en-
gage or to continue to engage in such production
manufacture sale or control with such intent
Every corporation person violating the pro
visions of this section shall be punished, on convc
ton, by fine of not less than $500 and not exceed
ing $4,000"
This will be recognized as drastic remedy for
much-complained-o evil and will be favoraby re
ceived by the country as it works practical outawr
OF the offending organization