The Washington herald., 1906-11-16

St Louis, Nov 15.-The Federal gov
ernment has begun its Iong-contemplated
battle against the oil trust
1t has delivered a powerful blow at the
Standard Oil octopus and its seventy sub
sidiary tentacles, end has thrown down
the gage of battle to John D. Rookie
feller and his associates III such a man
ner as to force their acceptance Of the
challenge
In papers fled this morning in the
United States Circuit Court in this city,
by direction of Attorney General Moody,
the government seeks 10 have the gigan-
tic trust dissolved. Ia support of its
plea, IL presents an array OF violations
Of the Sherman antitrust law, including
conspiracy, coercion, intimidation. rebat-
Ing, and many other Illegal practices
The probe. which has been sinking deep
er and deeper for three months, brings to
the light such an apparent mass Of mo-
nopolistic corruption as probably 60 war
rant the belief Of the Department of JUS
tice that this suit viii be the most bit
terly contested of the many that IL has
brought, and that it viii be the crowning
achievement in the administrations anti
trust accomplishments.
Seven Officials Named.
That the wheels Of justice may grind
exceedingly fine, John D. Rockefeller and
six other high officials of the oil trust
are made parties defendant They are
William Rockefeller. Henry H. Rogers.
Henry n F1agler. John D Archbold. Oil
xyar paz-rc s~7 Er,.-r.- n Fn~.4e
Criminal prosecutions have not been be-
gun against the trust officials. But this
form Of prosecution may follow In a
statement issued this morning announc-
ing the commencement of'the suit against
the oil trust, Attorney General Moody
says: The question whether any action
OF a different nature should be taken is
reserved for future consideration. The
controversy is now pending in the courts.
and any further comment by this de-
partment. or by any one connected with
it. would obviously be improper and un-
fair"
Reviews History of Trust.
The bin dled By the Attorney General
reviews the history Of the STANDARD Oil
Compassr from 1870 down bo the paseent
dsy-from the time when Il vas "a
simple conspiracy TO its formation as a
holding company under the laws Of New
Jersey. with an aggregate capital Of more
than $50 coo coo and controlling more than
90 per cent of the oil business in the
United States.
The defendants have one month in which
to enter their appearance, and an addi-
tionai month in which to file answers.
They also have the option of fling de-
murrer to the bin.
Busy Since 1870.
Tt is alleged in the petition that John D.
Rockefeller and his associates, the other
individual defendants, formed a con-
spiracy 10 monopolize the commerce in
petroleum and its products at an early
Gate-about the year 1s70-and that the
same individuals have controlled the COM
bination during all these years. in all it's
forms, and now control il.
The form that this combination and
conspiracy has assumed. and the devices
and practices employed 10 obtain control
of the business, have. however. from time
to time been subject 70 change as the
individual defendants considered il most
effective for carrying out their purposes.
The petition, therefore, is logically divid-
ed into three periods.
During the first one Of these periods
to wit, from $50 to 1ss2. the combination
assumed the form of a simple conspiracy
that is TO say. the defendants, with the
Standard Oil Company of Ohio. which
they organized. purchased and obtained
interests in by stock ownership and 9TH
erwise and entered into agreements with
various persons. firms, corporations, and
limited partnerships engaged in the same
business. whereby they acted together to
suppress competition and control the oil
business.
Developed Into n Trust.
During the second period. from 1852 to
1898, the combination and conspiracy as
sumed the form of trust agreement
whereby about forty separate corpora
tons and limited partnerships. engaged
in the same business. turned over the
MANAGEMENT Of their business to nine
trustees, with these individual defend
ants IN the majority, so that they con-
troIled all of these corporations and lin
tied partnerships. and thereby eliminated
the competition.
Such trust agreement having been de-
cIared illegal by the Supreme Court of
Ohio in 1892 the trustees passed a reso-
luton dissolving the trust. but continued
TO manage all Of the corporations and
limited partnerships in the same manner
until 1899, when they placed all OF the
stocks OF these corporations and limited
partnerships which had been previously
controlled by the trustees. into the
Standard Oil Company of New Jersey as
a holding corporation.
Since 1883 the Standard OIL Company Of
New Jersey has controlled all the various
corporations, purchased the stocks of
other corporations, and organized new
corporations, until It now controls about
seventy corporations.
Rebatfng a star Card.
The petition alleges that between 1870
and lSS2 the individual defendants ac-
ouired. In the name Of the Standard OIL
Company of Ohio, all but three or four of
the refineries at Cleveland. TO Wit. about
twenty-five; and that during said period
there were forty individuals partner
ships. and corporations engaged in pur-
chasing, shipping, refining, and selling
petroleum in New York, Pennsylvania,
and Ohio; and that they entered into
CONTINUED on FOURTH PAGE.