The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1906-06-20
THE WAR ON THE TRUSTS.

The Indictment of the American
sugar refining company and the New
York Central railway by the! federal
grand jury at New York comes
promptly on the heels of the presi-
dents attack on the Standard Oil
company. 1t is all part of the new
war which lie to be waged against the
combines. The order for an advance
on the trusts all along the line could
easily be discerned in the presidents
attacks on these combinations. He
says that ''the investigation now 60
ing on as to the shipments of the
sugar trust over the trunk lines run.
ming out Of New York city tends to
show that the sugar trust rarely, If
ever, pays the lawful rate for trans.
p~ortation." The federal grand Jury
is making quick work in its dealings
with these big corporations. Six of
the indictments just entered in New
York against the sugar trust aud the
New York Central are for giving and
receiving rebates.
Some OF the partisan papers are in.
timating that there is politics in the
Presidents new attack on the trusts,
says the Globe Democrat. He is at.
lacking them in order to spur con.
gress into enacting the railway rate
law quicker than it might otherwise
want to do, and be is also aiming to
strengthen his party in the congress.
sionalcampaign. Even If these charges
were true they would not be damaging
to either the president or his party.
The chances are. however, that the
president did not have either Of these
things in mind when he sounded the
new attack Of the trusts. This war
was in view YER since the criminal
suits against the packers failed in
Chicago two months ago through the
immunity barrier which Judge Humph.
rey raised against the government.
The Investigations which are being
conducted into the operations of some
OF the big corporations have furnished
the president and the attorney general
with the ammunition which they need
to make the warfare effective this time.
From the present indications there is
no chance of escape for the culprits
under the immunity or any other tech
nicality.
The escape of the packers will spur
the president and the attorney general
on to make effective work in this at.
tack. Under the statutes the penalties
prescribed for the otfenses with which
these officials are charged are &c., 600
fine and two years imprisonment. The
fine would not bother the culprits. 1t
is the possibility of imprisonment that
hurts. They al easily shove the fine
off on the stockholders of the corpor-
atoms. But the imprisonment cannot
be lodged in that way. The guilty |
person will have to suffer, whoever he
is. The new line Of attack which has
been opened or the trusts is disturb.
ing them more than they dare &C.
knowledge. They attack the president
and will fight the presidents party.
Some of them are doubtless incit-
ing this charge Of politics which is
being made by q few OF the democratic
papers against the president. There
is nothing either embarrassing to tho
republican party or discreditable to
the president In this accusation. The
president finds that certain federal
statutes are being evaded by certain
great combin atoms. BY this means
the offenders are not only disobeying
the law, but they are gaining unjust
advantages over their rivals, where
they have any rivals, and they are
levying tribute on the 5000, 900 AM
erican people. The president pro.
poses to put the laws into operation,
to place to Offenders in prison stripes,
and to protect the people from oppres-
sion. If the presidents action, backed
as it is by the republican party, is
politics, let the trusts make the most
OF it.