The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1905-02-04
SUPREME COURT DECISION
Will Make II Possible for an Agrees
i've Administration to Restrain
the Trusts

Not even the decision in the North
ern securities merger case was of so
great an importance to the public in
general as the decision handed down
by the supreme court recently. which
finds the big meat packers guilty Of a
conspiracy in the restraint Of interstate
commerce. II is the most important
trust busting" work Yet accomplish
ed under the Sherman antitrust act.
In the Northern securities case an act
ual attempt to merge was proved, and
proved. and prohibited. The beef trust
case goes further. because in spite of
the fact that there was no actual merg-
or Of the various concerns. it was
shown that 'gentlemen's agreements
concerning prices can be reached by
the Sherman act. As Attorney General
Moody remarked, i'm commenting upon
the case, THE decision makes it clear
that all combinations between indepen-
dent individuals. partnerships or cor
porations engaged in interstate COM
merce, by which competition between
them i'm such commerce is suppressed,
fall under the prohibition of the So
called antitrust act.
The great development of indus
trialism," he says, means that there
y,,,,S. 10 an ;p.raoSa IN tho sunnr,.icio,,
exercised by the government over bus
mess enterprises. This supervision
should not take the form of violent and
ill-advised interference; and assuredly
these is danger lest it take such form
if the business leaders of the business
community confine themselves to try
ing TO thwart the effort at regulation
instead of guiding il Alright.
Neither this people nor any other
free people will permanently tolerate
the use Of the vast power conferred by
vast wealth. and especially by wealth
i'm its corporate form without lodging
somewhere i'm the government the still
higher power, of seeing that this pow
or i'm addition To being used i'm the in
terest OF the individual or individuals
possessing it. is also used for and not
against the interests of the people as
Il whole"
And then, considering specifically the
movement for federal regulation of
railroads. he states the case succinctly:
In some such body as the interstate
commerce commission there must be
lodged i'm effective shape the power to
See that every shipper who uses the
railroads. and every man who owns or
manages a railroad shall on the one
hand be given justice and on the other
hand be required To do justice. Jus
tice-so far as it is humanity possible
to give and 10 get justice-is the foun-
datiOn Of our government. We are not
trying to strike down the rich man:
on the contrary. Wa Will not tolerate
any attack upon his rights. We are not
trying to give an improper advantage
To the poor man because he is poor,
TO the man of small means because he
has not larger means: but we are striv-
ing TO see that the man of small means
has exactly as good chance so far as
We can obtain ii for him. as the man
of larger means: that there shall be
equality of opportunity for the one as
for the other"
To recapitulate: The decision Of the
supreme court in the beef trust case is
not only a victory for the Sherman an
ti-trust act. but is Il victory for the
president as well. For under less
vigorous administration it might have
lain in the statute books until the
worms ate il. and the public forget
there WAS such a thing. And from the
spirit the president has shown i'm his
dealing with this ana kindred phases
of the trust problem. We can see only
thu one outcome 10 the national freight
rate question. The railroads of the
country must either yield gracefully to
Jhe idea Of government supervision, or
Yield ungracefully for they viii have
10 yield-Atlanta Journal