The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1906-11-15

| Through the resident district attor-
ney, instituted proceedings against
the Standard Oil Company of New
act, by filing in the U. S. Circuit
Court at ST. Louis a petition in
equity against it and its seventy con-
stituent corporations and partner
ships and seven individual defend
ants, asking that the combination be
declared unlawful and in the future
be enjoined from entering into any
contract or combination in restraint
of trade, etc.
Attorney General Moody publicly
made a statement today in which
he said, in part: "In June last, by
direction of the President, Messrs.
Kellogg and Morrison were appoint
ed by me as special assistant attor-
Attorney General Purdy, to make in
vestigation of the relations Of the
Standard Oil Company of New Jer-
sey to the business of refining, trans
portation, distributing and selling
oil throughout the United States.
They have completed that duty and
the report of their investigation has
received the careful consideration of
the President and Cabinet The in
formation made available to the de-
rious corporations and limited part
nerships under control ~of the Stan
dard Oil Company of New Jersey
produce, transport and sell about 80
per cent of all-the refined oil pro-
duced, and sell about 80 per cent of
all the refined oil produced, trans
ported and sold in the United Stases
for domestic use, and about the same
proportion of all refined oil exported
from the United Statese that this
share of business has been procur-
ed by a course of action which, be-
ginning in 1870, has continued under
the direction of the same persons,
in the main, down to- the present
time; that Of these persons now sur
living are John D. Rockefeller. Wm
n. AeOShOICIICA, 11CAIy hOStTS,
Henry NJ. Flagler, John D. Archbold,
Oliver H. Payne and Chas NJ Pratt :;
that the design throughout of the per-
sons having control of the enterprise
has been to suppress competition and
obtain as far as possible a monopo-
ly; that between 1870 and 1882 the
design was effected through an agree
ment between many persons and cor
porations; that in 1872 the result
aimed at was made more certain by
tees, including five of the men above
named sufficient stock in SO corpora
tions to enable the trustees to con-
troll operations in such way that
| competition was suppressed
That this plan was acted on until
declared illegal by the supreme court
of Ohio in 1892; that during seven
years following the same individuals
as a majority of the liquidating trus-
| tees were pretending to liquidate
| the trust, but as a matter of fact
were managing the various corpora.
tions in the same old way; that in
1899 the individual defendants in
creased the stock of the STANDARD
| Oil Company of New Jersey from
$10,000.OO0 to s11O.0OO.O0O and &C
quired all the stock Heretofore con
trolled. by the trustees, paying there
for by the issue of it's own shares
in exchange; that the purpose and
effect of using the Standard Oil Com
pany of New Jersey as the holding
company was precisely the same as
/ the purpose and effect of the appoint
ment of trustees heretofore referred
TO, namely, to suppress competition
that by the foregoing methods, aid
ed by the establishment of railroad
rates which disseminated in favor
of the corporations whose stock was
held by the holding company that
company has been able to obtain a
monopoly. with the result that prices
are very mucn higher to the consum
er than in territoy where competition
to Some extent still exists.
i Accordingly petition in equity
under the provisions of the Sherman
act has this day been filed against
the Standard Oil Company OF New
Jersey ana seventy other corpora