Omaha daily bee., 1906-11-01

and the whole problem over to the succeed
ing republican congress, which took UP the
problem and passed what Is known as the
antitrust Jaw,
" hne It Was entirely proper for congress
the act was not as elaborate as ii might
nave been had the methods and the de-
t,dls of these organizations been tettef
understood. And, therefore, 1t became nee
ssarS IN order to lay down the rules OF
conduct, in order TO furnish a proper
guidance to business men, so as to show
the ground they might stand upon and SET
the limits beyond which they could not go
became necessary to go Into court enc
nave the law construed and interpreted.
Well, when you go into courts 1T takes
lime Judges act with elaboration; they
Vow, Che nrst case which came to the
supreme court was what Is known as tbs
.ugar trust case. That court held that
he case wes not within the antitrust law
mot because II was not a trust. not pc
stralnt OF trade, but because 1t was not 9
combination in restraint OF Interstate
trade. showing the limitation upon the
And this decision so discouraged Mr.
Olney, attorney general under Mr.. Cleve
ana, that he concluded that the act cOulc
not be used to accomplish any useful / UT,
pose and that the question OF trusts anc
| their suppression must be relegated to the
tates and the state legislatures.
But Judge Harmon, who succeeded Mr.
Jlney under Mr. Cleveland proceeded, uu'
| Ter the trust law, TO bring about some
'uits IN which It was dete 5liH, ina thhss,,
hey were under the antitrust law and
ssertinE they we're only under the inter
tate commerce. law, were found by IN,
agaged in interstate trade, to be within
! he antitrust law under. the joint trafh'
ecision and the transmlssour decision
Most Important Case,
The most important decision, however
J Inder the antitrust act was the one which
/ vas Initiated in Mr.. ROosevelts first term
/ and that was what was called the North
In that case a New Jersey corporation
was organised for the purpose OF holdlnl
stock in the Great Northern and the North
/ be put under one management and TIL
| question was whether that was a conbiua
! ton in restraint OF interstate trade, AM
| the court held that It was.
1 Mr. Roosevelt, by directing that suit h
| brought and be carried through, did no
J make himself at all popular in Wall street
| the reason that had that decision not beet
| rendered, the scheme devised offered al
] opportunity for the union Of all our rail
roads in one syndicate, or, indeed, Glmos
| In one man.
Now. the number OF trust suits brough
/ under Mr.. Harrison was six under MI
| Cleveland was seven; under Major Mckin
! ley, during the Spanish war. was three
| and under Mr., Roosevelt, since the begin
ming OF his administration, have been six
teen, and there are number yet to b
! 'rought.
But there was one instrtlmentality in tn
| building up OF trusts that I have not men
! toned, that was perhaps the most powerful
that was the use OF the railway companie
! for the purpose Of driving competition Wit
trusts out Of business.
/ or course q trust Is a great industris
manufacturing corporation II control
numerous plants, and II goes 10 the railwa
company and says, Here, n you cont CIV
4 me discriminating rates against my CON
petitor then / win give my business I
y ynlT competitor" and IN that way the
lcoerce the railways. Sometimes the raj
ways We're willing to be coerced daughter
hut they. coerced the railways Into givin
4 secret rebates. t. 2. +f-'
After they has come TO the conelusio
that the Interstate commerce law was Z
hard TO enforce: that the Antitrust la
was 20 vague In its provisions: that IN
getting OF evidence Of these violations
Ia was so dihicult, that practically the law
were dead letters. and Mr.. Roosevelt cor
cluded that Il had come 20 a stop the frs
and most Important means that he too
was 20 bTng about an amendment to III
interstate commerce law.
There mad been an amendment called IN
lFlk'ps rebate Law which expressly forbad
rebates.
Rrt the trouble win the interstate con
merce law was this that Il had provided
Tribunal that while IL appeared to be
tribunal with power, was really notbin
but an advisory board.
Results OF Two Laws.
Aud what was the Iesult7 WAY IN
railroads simply ignored the lnterstat