The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-06-30

/ STANDARD III uuSI or assignments VI
/ legal title of such trust certificates
OF stock of the Standard Oil company
/ of New Jersey as may desire to come
in and share the expense Of this suit
Buys Stock to Bring Suit
Rice purchased six shares Of stand
ard Oil trust stock in October, 1885.
in order to obtain inside information
of the purposes and powers of the
| company, after he had found himself
unable to get the same railroad freight
rates when the railroad had been COM
/ PEELED to pay fines for giving Stand
ard Oil trust preferential rates and I'M
/ delayed service in delivering oil. He
also procured a certificate for another
share of Standard Oil trust known
as assignment of legal title an
other form of trust certificates. This
was purchased in 1895.
AS result of the action he brought
he compelled the Standard Oil trust
to iquidate this certain share, and he
received therefor nineteen corporate
certificates for fractional interests in
each of the twenty subsidiary COM
panies Except one, the Anglo-Ameri-
can Oil company of London, for which
he got an Acknowledge in writ
ing) owned by the trustees of the
Standard Oil company.
Business Shut Down in '96.
Rice AYERS he was forced to shut
down his oil business by the unlawful
means used by the Standard Oil trust
to drive him out of business, and that
loss for the same reasons.
Tracing the progress of the Standard
Oil enterprise Rice relates that in
January, 1882. John D. and William
A. Bostwick. Henry NJ. Flagler w. G.
Warden, Charles Pratt, John D. Arch
bold, and others, formed a combina-
ton of forty corporations, dividing
their stockholders into three classes.
They caused themselves to be elected
trustees thereof, and thereupon they
began and continued to do whatever
they deemed feasible to create a mon
opoly in the oil business and a COM
binatiOn in restraint OF trade"
Rice charges them with combining
to enable these trustees to compel
preferential carriage charges from
railroads or other carriers, by rebate
or otherwise, to suppress competition
of the business of mining, trading in
manufacturing and otherwise dealing
in petroleum and its various products.
No little space is devoted to a prayer
to the court of chancery as to GUST
ing the Standard Oil company of Ohio
from that state. The suit instituted
/ by the attorney general in 1890 by
quo warranto to have its rights and
privileges forfeited and exclude it
from the state is rehearSed as is the
opinion of the supreme court of Ohio.
rendered in 1892, in which the COM
pany is declared an unlawful corpo-
ration and ousted, as tending to the
creation OF monopoly and control of
production as well as prices and as
being against public policy.
Move to End Trust.
The next step was taken when Jo-
seph H. Choate, Virgil p. Cline, long
Ohio counsel of the Standard Oil com
pany, and S. c. T. Todd, it's general
counsel. went into court in May, 1892,
and stated that the Ohio Standard Oil
company be a once released from any
relation to the Standard Oil Trust.
and that the trust itself be terminated
and dissolved.
Delay ensuing. Rice declares these
| trustees were enabled to transfer back
to themselves the trust certificates
and become Hquidating trustees to
hold the property and carry on BUSH
ness pending it's dissolution under the
not a definite share or part of any
one of the properties held by these
trustees but a fractional part of every
subsidiary company or property held
| by the trustees under the ratio the
number of trust certificates held bore
to the total number outstanding.
In this way, Rice became the pos
SCISSOR of one share of stock of the
Standard Oil company. Through his
agent, one kemper, who held his
share, as Rice was not permitted to
buy any such interest personally he
converted it into what is known as
an assignment title" thus he swears,
he discovered the trustees had no in
tention of carrying out the promise
Couldn't Produce Books.
The attorney general again pur-
sued the company, and it was ordered
to produce its books in court, but the
secretary of the Standard Oil COM
pany in Ohio, B. F.. Squires. came into
court ana said its books were burned.
and that they could not be produced
in court because the books disclose
facts and circumstances which will be
used against the Standard Oil COM
ma nv a limo TO Of
Offenses made criminal by act of the
legislature of Ohio
Then the New Jersey Standard Oil
company was formed, and the capital
stock of the Standard Oil trust in
creased through a vote of its trustees
from 100000 to $4,000, 1000, and
subsequently to $11O,OO0,0OO. them
selves continuing in control, together
own selection.
Rice swears mo other changes were
made in turning the unlawful Stand
ard Oil trust into the Standard Oil
company of New Jersey than the de-
livery of the assets by the trustees
to n corporate entity, and a change of
name in addition to a quartet of trus-
tees.
Demands Dissolution Order.
With its increased capital the con-
Germ acquired eleven more concerns
with a net capitalization of 100000
600. He AYERS he frequently and in
a friendly manner applied to these
trustees to dissolve the company as
ordered by the courts and return to
him his share of its property and al
low him to open and operate a re-
finery at Marietta, but in vain. Rice
prays the Standard Oil company shall
be dissolved, disintegrated, and the
present officers and directing spirits
be restrained from further conducting
its business or dispoSing of its prop
erty, and that receivers or officers of
the court of chancery of New jersey
be appointed to ascertain the rights
of shareholders.
l,1,nrIne L IIn,,.a ..in1rror, L.