The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-07-04

NllcdSO, July I.-AIter an lnyeSu-
CATION of several months, during which
more than a hundred witnesses were
examined, a federal grand jury this af-
ternoon returned indictments against
seventeen men, prominent in the beef
packing industries, for violation of the
Sherman antitrust law, and against
four officials Of Schwarzechild and Sui
zeberger for alleged illegal rebating
agreement with railroads.
Besides these individual indictments,
bills were voted against Armour &
Company, Swift & Company, Nelson
Morris and Company, Fairbanks Can
ming Company and the Cudahy Pack
ing Company.
The men indicted for alleged
conspiracy in restraint of trade which
constitutes a violation of the Sherman
act are:
J. Ogden Armour, president of Ar
rnour & Company; Charles Armour, Of
Armour. & Company; Arthur Meeker,
general manager Armour e Company !;
Il. J. Connors, director Armour & Com
pany; p. e. Valentine, treasurer Ar
nlour & Company; Samuel McRoberts,
assistant treasurer Armour & Com
pany; Louis f. Swift. president Of
Swift & Company; Charles Swift, Of
Swift & Company; Lawrence A. Car
ton, treasurer Swift & Company; Ar
thur w. Evans, attorney for Swift s.
Company; r. c. McManus, attorney
for Swift & Company: A. Fl. Veeder.
general counsel for Swift & Company,
Edward Cudahy, of Cudahy Company;
d. Eff Hartwell, secretary Swift &
Co.; Edward Swift, vice president
Swift & Company; Edward Norris,
secretary Nelson Morris & Company;
Ira W Morris, of Nelson, Morris &
Company. The four employees of
Schwarzschild & SulZeberger who were
indicted for alleged rebating with the
railroads, are all connected with the
traffic department of the corporation.
Their names are: Samuel We'll, B. S.
Cusey. G.. E. Todd and Y. D. Skip
worth
The indictments voted for alleged
violation of the antitrust law were
identical in each instance. They con-
tanned eight counts. The first and the
second counts of the indictments per-
tained only TO beef sold in domestic
trade The ninth and the tenth counts
relate to beef sold in foreign trade.
The third count charges conspiracy
in restraint of trade and commerce
among the states, and with foreign ma
tons. This count charges that the
trade which the defendants were car
rying on was to be restrained in sey
eral ways.
First Competition in the buying OF
cattle at the stOckyardS in different
cities, was to be prevented and de-
stroyed by the defendants who rfnr'-
ed their purchasing agents to refrain
from bidding against each other.
Second. Competition as to the sale
Of the foregoing commodities i'm for
eign and domestic markets was to be
prevented and destroyed by the defend
aRts fixing non-competitive and unrea-
sOnable prices for such commodities,
and requiring their representatives in
the different markets to fix prices By
agreement from day to day according
to what the market would stand.
Third. The supply Of the foregoing
commodities was to be curtailed and
restricted whenever necessary to MAIN
tain the prices so fixed.
Fourth. The United States was d.
yided up into territories among the de-
PENDANTS, and each company was 10
keep its own territory without inter-
ference by the others.
Fifth. There was a division as to
the volume Of trade allowed to each
defendant in a given market, il one
packer sold more than his percentage
during a given week, he was obliged
TO pay an '.ante'' of so much a hum
dred weight, according to the territory
in which the matter occurred, into a
pool to cover the excess of sales and
this fund was divided among the pack
ers who fell short i'm their sales.
Sixth Certain corporations, namely.
the Aetna Trading Company and the
Oppenheimer Manufacturing Company
were to be appointed exclusive agents