The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-01-30
Packers Combine Given Black
Eye by supreme Court.
Decision Of the Lowea Court
Unanimously Affirmed.
INJUNCTION STANDS.
Continuous Offenses Declared to
Have Been Established.
Whole Scheme Is Found to Be
Within Reach of Law.

washington, Jan. 30.-The supreme
court of the United States today decid-
ed the case of the United States VS.
& Co., known as the beef trust
case, charging conspiracy among the
packers to fix prices on fresh meats,
etc. The opinion was handed down by
Justice Holmes and affirmed the decis-
ion of the court below which was
against the packers.
In his opinion Justice Holmes discuss
ed at length the various contentious of
the packers and disposed of them indi-
vidually. He admitted that some of the
charges were less specified than desir-
able, but said this was necessarily true
on account of the vast extent of the
field covered. He d that sufficient
evidence had been shown to prove con-
tfnuance Offenses and an offenSe of
such a nature as to Justify the proceed
ing. The opinion continues the injunc-
ton, granted against the packers under
the Sherman antitrust law by the lower
courts. The opinion was in
by all the members of h court.
Summarizing the bills Justice Holmes
said:
1T charges a combination of a DOM
inant proportion of the dealers in fresh
meat throughout the United States not
to bid against each other in the live
stock markets OF the dl1erent states,
to bid up prices for d few days in order
to induce the cattlemen to send their
stock to the stock yards; to fix prices
at hich they will sell and to that END
to restrict shipments of meat wnen
necessary, to establish a UNIFORM RUE
of credit to dealers and to keep a DIack
list: to make uniform ana improper
charges for carriage and finally to get
less than lawful rates from the rail-
roads to the exclusion of competitors.
Referring to the allegation OF lack OF
continuity in the charges he said:
Whatever may be thought concern
ing the proper construction OF me sta5
tute a. bill in equity is not to be read
and construed as an indictment WouIo
have been read and, construed a nun
dred wears ago, but 1t Is to be taken
to mean what 1t falrly conveys 70
disDassionate reader by a fairly exact
use of English speech. Thus read TINS
hin seems to US intended to allege sue
cessive elements of a single connected
scheme"
IA robustness in the following language;
THE scheme as a whole seems 70
rs to be within reach OF the law me
ed them are enough to give TO the
scheme a body, and for all that we
can saw to accomplish it. Moreover
whatever we may think OF lhenl
distinct charges they are alleged as
! elements of the scheme 1t IS sugssst
ed that several acts charged are law
full and hat intent can make no I'LL
ference.
.sR1It they are bound together as the
parts of a single plan. The plan may
make the parts 4htent II
almost essential to such a c~onVenuon
and is essential to sueh an ZIP.
Where acts are not sufficient in tnem-
selves to produce a result Wnlch the
law seeks to prevention instance
the monOpoly-but equ1re turtnel
acts in addition to the mere FORCES "
nature to bring hat result to pass, ar
intent to bring it to pass is necessary
in order to produce dangerous prop
ability thai it will happen"
He also said: 1.-THE commission al
legged embraces restraint and monop-
DIV OF trade within a single state al
; though its effect upon commerce.
among the states is not accident sec
ondary. remote or mercy
Speaking further on the question OF
interference with interstate commerce
Justice Holmes said that a chargt
was made of a combination of indie
i, pendent dealers to restrict the com.
petition of the agents who purchased
stock for them in h stock yards
s"The purchasers and their slaugh'
tering establishments are, he said
.slargely in different states o those
of the stock yards, and the sellers O.
the cattle, perhaps it is not too mucf
to assume largely in difIerent states
from either. The intent of the com
mission is not merely to restrict com
petition among the parties, but. as W.
: have said, by force of the general al
legation at the end of the bill, to ai'
: in an attempt to monopolize com
merce among states
He added "When cattle are sen
With the expectation that they vii
! end their transit after purchase. il
another and when in effect they do sc
' with the only interruption necessar,
being to find a purchaser at the STOCK
. yards and when this is a TYPICAL con
> stantlv re%occurring course, the cur
: rent thus existing is a current OF com
merce among the states, and the pur
n chase of the cattle is a part ana III
cident of such commerce."
DEATHS AND FUNERALS.