The Minneapolis journal., 1903-04-30
RA.IL, DADS.
HILL WONT GIVE up
Won't Haul Down Northern Securi-.
ties Flag Till Last Shot in the
Locker Is Fired. .
Opposition Of Hartman Makes Him
Much Less Confident His At
torney's Contentious.
Special to The Journal.

SpoClAl = 4
3, New York, April 30.-Northern Securi-
ties has ceased to figure prominently IN
public print. but a tremendous amount OF
work is being done in the office of tina
company by the officials and attorneys
The latter are particularly busy. Mr.
Hills advice with regard to the appeal
seems to have overcome the opposition OF
the Hartman faction. The Hartman
people, led by Jacob schiff, were In favor
Of abandoning the appeal and trying to
discover some practicable method OF car
rying on the business of the company in
conformity with the law. Mr.. Hill strong
ly opposed any such conplete surrender'
Mr.. Hill Is not now nearly so confident
OF winning the appeal as he was before the
decision was rendered against him. The
strong opposition that developed III Harri-
man circles has done more to shake ms
confidence than anything else. He still
thinks that there is a fighting chance and
he is not prepared to haul down his flag
until the last shot in the locker has been
fired. . .-..-. 49,. ,z-
At least one of his attorneys is still un-
shaken in his confidence that the supreme
court of the United States will not rule
in accordance with the decision rendered
at ST. Paul. He bases his confidence upon
the following two assertions: i:'
First-The supreme court has always re-
fused to pass upon question OF owner
ship of property against those actually i'll
possession unless this possession has been
obtained in such manner as brings the
owner within the purview of the criminal
law. "''
Second-In all suits pertaining to inter-
state commerce the supreme court of the
United States has always paid much more
attention to acts than theories. In other
words, before the supreme court has been
| willing to adjudge company guilty OF
! "restraint of commerce. it has always
been necessary to prove that that com
pany has committed individual acts that
have operated to restrain or interfere with
! interstate commerce. The circuit court at
St. Paul condemned Northern Securities
as illegal because that company is in a
| position to commit such acts. The su-
preme court may demand that the actua
commission of such acts must be proved
| It will be seen Immediately that. the
position Of this attorney is not technical
but is based upon the broad assumption
| that the supreme court will put upon the
Sherman antitrust law common sens:
translation" and will not stand upon its
literal sense. This attorney says emphat.
ically that if the supreme court shoul6
translate the Sherman law literally. as the
| circuit court has translated it, there Is
hardly a company doing an interstate
commerce business that could not be at
tackled on similar grounds, because almos
every one of these companies has affil:
lated lines over which it exercises a con
troll. and thru which it could if it de
sired. interfere with and injure interstate
commerce. He states his position as fol
lows:
viii This Scare the Supreme Court?
1--WE shall show the supreme court tha
if this ruling is allowed to stand and t.
become a. precedent it will lead to a, mul
titude of SUITS" blacknailing and other
wise: which will do more in twelve months
to hamper. and interfere with interstat
commerce than all the mergers in tn
country could do in as many years. With
out mentioning roads that control othe
lines without actually owning more tina
half the stock, there are at least two in
stances of roads that actually control othe
railroads which would 1nanifestly come un
= der the same ruling. These are the own
ership Of Chattanooga by Louisville I
= Nashville and the control of Jersey Cen
! trail by Reading. Possibly the control c
, Mobile & Ohio by Southern & Lake Shor
!, by, New York Central would also be en-
dangered
> I'm other words we shall endeavor
. show before the supreme court that tn
, literal translation of the Sherman anti
\ trust law would not only put dangerou
weapon In the hands of unscrupulous mel
but would in itself be more dangerous |
the development OF interstate commerc
than it would be to allow the railroads
assume by combination position and
;, power that might If wrongly exercised /
commerce." "r ~,