The San Francisco call., 1906-06-23
Corporations Must Pay
Fifteen Thousand
Dollars.
Two Agents Sentenced to
Short Periods in
Jail.

United States District Court here this
morning Judge Mcpherson of Red Oak,
Iowa, passed sentence upon the seven
defendants recently convicted in this
court of making concessions and ac-
cepting and conspiring to accept re-
bates on shipments. Judgments In the
nature of fines were assessed as fol-
lows: Swift & Co., Cudahy Packing
Company, the Armour Packing Com
pany, Nelson Morris & Co. and the Chi
cago, Burlington and Quincy Railway.
SIS, 900 each.
George L. Thomas of New York was
fined $4,000 and sentenced 10 four
months in the pehitentiary.
l. B. Taggart Of New York was fined
$4,000 and sentenced to three months In
the penitentiary.
Judge Mcpherson made a statement
of the cases before passing Judgment.
in which he reviewed the various
charges and evidence brought out at
the trial He said that he was fully
persuaded that the verdicts In the pack
ing-house cases and the case Of the
Burlington were right, and he assessed
the fines against all OF the corporations
at the same sum.
OPINION OF THE JUDGE.
In speaking of the Thomas and Tag
CART cases, Judge Mcpherson said that
evidence had been adduced to show that
George A. Barton, for the firm Of Bar
ton Bros, wholesale shoe and leather
dealers, had received large sums OF
money from various railways through
the defendants.
Not only so,' continued the court.
''but the following named concerns re-
ceived the sums stated from the rail-
ways: Barton Bros, $500; Robert Keith
Furniture Company, Kansas City. $4,000;
Emery Bird Thayer Dry Goods Com
pany. $4,000: Burnham- Hanna Munger
Dry Goods Company. s44,566; Harga-
dine-McKittrick Dry Goods Company,
SIC, ,OOe; r. P. Kirkenhall Shoe Company,
$1,000.
so that, as nearly as can be gath
cred from the evidence. the defendants
after deducting for their own services
from money received from railways.
paid to the concerns named as rebates
the enormous sum of SS2.459.
'I assume all these concerns will be
proceeded against for receiving these
unlawful rebates, which can be done
either by indictment or information, as
the last vestige of the plea Of immunity
for corporations has been wiped out
by the decision Of the Supreme Court
of the United States OF March IL, 1906,
in the case of Hale vs.. Henkie.
The fine OF $4,000 assessed against
the Burlington covered all four counts,
the aggregate amount OF the fines In
the seven cases tetaling $4,000.
Appeals were filed in each case, and
stay of execution was granted until
June %. The bonds In the case OF
Thomas and Taggart were fixed at
10000 each. These two men appeared
I'm court personally and upon being
sentenced promptly furnished the re-
auired bonds. The bonds IN the case OF
the packing companies and the Burling-
ton were fixed at $4,000 each.
various cases motions for new trials
were made. All these motions were
overruled.
PLEA FOR DEFENSE.
Judge o. NJ. Spencer of st. Joseph.
general counselor OF the Burlington
Railway, and as one of the counsel for
Thomas and Taggart, before sentence
was passed made a presentation OF the
cases to the court, in the course OF
which he said
Any anxiety may feel lest too Sc
we're a punishment be imposed on these
defendants does not grow out OF any
facts in evidences in the case but rests
record. ,,.,o =,
SPEAKER sns RaPAc Cannon, in his recent article,
assures us that the country was never
so prosperous as now, he might well
have added with equal truth ina. tns ne
tone OF prosperity so much as 1t does
Just now. For two weeks we have
been trying cases In this honorable
court, the magnitude and Importance
of which would have been common
but for the worked-up condition OF
the public mind by reports OF perform
ances in Washington, such as the rate
bill. the meat inspection bill and divers
other subjects. including gratis, trusts
and oil combines.
The announcement Is sent abroad by
the Department of Justice at Washing
ton that unless some one Is sent to the
penitentiary, this rebate practice Will
not stop.
If the conspiracy statute applies to
any one form of rebates and conces-
sions, 1t likewise applies to all forms OF
rebates and concessions, and the courts
cannot be used to punish one wrong