The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-05-26
Agents of Standard Oil Tell of
Instructions They Had
to Follow.
DROVE INDEPENDENTS TO
WALL WITHOUT MERCY
Hearing Called by Interstate
Commerce Commission
Sensational.

nineteen witnesses were Callcu DS In
terstate Commerce Commissioners
Prouty and Clements in the Standard
oil inquiry here today. Commission
ers' counsel and everybody connected
with the investigation put in hard
day and the work of the two sessions
was prolific of substantial results.
Sensational Testimony.
Testimony bordering on the sensa-
tional was obtained from several wit~
nesses That of George L. Lane OF
Mansfield. o., a former employee OF
the Standard oil company, was re-
garded as particularly important. Ac-
cording TO his evidence, Lane was for
about fourteen months In 1901 and 1907,
employed by the Standard OF! company
for the particular purpose OF driving
all of the Independent oil peddlers In
dozen or more of the principal cities
and towns of northern Ohio out OF
business.
Would Show No Mercy.
He said he was employed by c. NJ.
Lynns of the Cleveland office of the
Standard OIL company TO go TO GER
tain designated places and use every
means. fair or foul, to force the indie
pendents TO quit He described the
methods pursued In detail.
Hired for Dirty Work.
My Instructions" he said. were to
kill them, and l was told that II l
could not do the job somebody else
would be sent to take my place. 1
worked in Youngstown and surround
ing small towns. Canton, Girard. War
rem. Ravenna, Massllon, Mansfield,
Elyria, Oberlln and other places. In
oil of the towns. with the exception
OF Youngstown, the independent ped
4 70 oil don thaiT
business.
Met One Waterloo.
In Youngstown a man named VII
liam H Vahey was encountered and
despite everything we could do he held
his trade. We gave oil away by the
barrel and tank load. but it did no
good. Valleys customers threw II
away
Girl Tells of Records.
Miss Elizabeth Protzman. stenog-
rapher and bookkeeper In the Dayton
office of the Standard OIL company. tes-
tilted that information concerning the
oil shipments of rivals was brought into
the office by draymen and that she
made careful record OF 1t and gave IL
TO her superior.
Has Own Telegraph System.
John Obeirn, general superintendent
of the Lima division of the Buckeye
Pipe Line company, a Standard con-
oern. was asked particularly about the
Standards telegraph system, especially
that part connected with the pipe line
company. The inquiries succeeded In
establishing the general fact that the
Standard has an immense telegraph
system OF It's own extending to nearly
every part of the country and that In
carrying on its great volume of trade
1t does not often require the use OF the
regular lines Of the big telegraph COM
panleS
Western Union Not In.
The company has has it's own wires.
leased or otherwise. operators, Offices
regulations, blanks and other station
cry. and sometimes sends messages for
persons not connected with the COM
pany. Witness denied that the COM
pany exchanged business with the
Western Union Telegraph company at
points where one had an Office and the
other did not.
Tells How Ruin Came.
D. Z. Byles. secretary and treasurer of
the Independent Refining company,
Limited of OIL city Pa. offered testi-
mony concerning the railroad rate dis
elimination against his company, es-
pecially by the Lake Shore and Penn
sylvania roads, which had practically
driven his company out Of the entire
New England field. and that In order to
hurt their business in Indiana the
Standard agents circulated reports TO
the effect that the Oh City company
was I'm reality Standard oil concern.
Frank j Heincrlch of Bellevue, O.,
told how his Independent oil business
was all but ruined by the methods of
the Standard,
Forced to Sell Out.
w. j, Cram OF Marietta. o., testified
that the Standard for years bounded
his company and that the company was
| finally compelled to sell It's property al
| low figure.
w f.. Wall. president of the Fred T.
| Clarke company, oil dealers OF Cleve-
| land, pointed out on rate sheets irregu
| laritles in rates 10 different points in
| the country.
Subjected to Threats.
E. M. Gibbs, a merchant of Upton.
| O., said he was compelled to handle the
! Standards oil. because the Standards
| agents threatened to start another store
| close by and sell every article he sold
In competition.
Charles A Kicks OF Cleveland. en-
| ployed I'm the Cleveland office Of the
Standard OH company from 1889 to
| 1901, his last position being that Of
assistant general manager. denied upon
| cross examination that large amount
of Standard on literature was prepared
! in his office and offered to papers
throughout Ohio
George l. Lewis. a lubricating oil
salesman OF Chicago. told how he lost
a contract with the Dayton and Troy
| Traction line because the Standard
agents promised enough freight TO more
than pay for the oil.
Hold on the Railroad
G. r. Duffy. purchasing agent of the
| Hooking Valley railroad. was called to
testify concerning the buying of lubri-
eating oils. Asked If he had not said
| recently that his road would lose from
$780, TO 100000 a year In freightage
If he bought lubricating oils from any
| other company than the Standard, or
from the Aetna. he replied that nc
might have made such a remark, but he
had no positive recollection OF 1t.
Eat your lunch in the palm garden