The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1906-06-06
AFTER THE DRUG TRUST
Government Begins Action Under
Anti Trust Law.
Injunction Suit Inausurated in Indi.
ana by Order Of Attorney
General Moody.

Washington, D. C.-Fractically every
person in the United States will feel o
lively interest in the antitrust proceed.
ings begun by the Attorney-General
under direction Of the President,
against the tripartite combination Of
druggists and drug manufacturers gen.
orally known as the Drug Trust. The
petition is filed in the United States
Circuit Court in Indiana.
This suit is one more step in the COM
prehensive program of the Administra-
ton to bring within the law business
men who are steadily extending mon
opolistic practices to every branch of
trade.
Acknowledgement Moody gave out
this statement:
1.-The Government to-day fled in the
Circuit Court Of the United States for
the district Of Indiana a petition for an
injunction against certain associations,
corporations and individuals compris-
ing what is commonly known as the
Drug Trust. The parties defendant
have combined to control the prices at
which proprietary medicines and drugs
shall be sold to the consumer through
the retail druggists in violation of the
Sherman Antitrust law. The parties
to the combination include the Proprie-
tary Association Of America. the Ma
tional Wholesale Druggists Associa-
ton and the National Association OF
Druggists"
The Proprietary Association, the At
torney-General explains, is composed
of ninety per cent. Of all the manufac-
turers Of patent medicines and proprie-
tary articles, the National. Wholesale
Druggists Association is composed Of
nearly all the wholesale druggists. and
the National Association of Retail
Druggists is composed of delegates
from affiliated local associations Of re.
tail druggists, comprising nearly all the
retailers in the country. The officers
Of the associations are made parties de-
PENDANT to the suit, as we'll as certain
other individuals, firms and corpora
tons who are members Of the respect
I've associations.
The bill charges that these associa-
tons and their members have entered
into a conspiracy to arbitrarily fix and
regulate the price at which such COM
modities SHALL be sold to the consumer,
and that they have established rules
ind regulations to enforce such an I'M
lawful agreement by restricting. the
purchase and sale of such commodities
to members who live up to and OBJ
serve such rules and regulations.
No retail druggist can obtain goods
from a wholesale druggist or a manu-
facturer of a proprietary medicine. un-
less such retail druggist becomes a
member of the National Association.
and in order to become such member
he must agree to observe the estab-
lished price Mt which such proprietary
medicine shall be sold to the consumer.
If he cuts prices he IS Immediately
placed upon the list of what is Know
as aggressive cutters" and thereafter
Is unable to obtain goods.
The Department of Justice now has
under way or in contemplation suits
against at least ten monopolies. or
classes of monopolies, and out Of them
hundreds of suits may grow. They are
as follows:
Suit to enjoin Drug Trust.
Suit to enjoin Northwestern Paper
Trust.
Suit to erjoin Tobacco Trust. :
Suit against rebate by private cars
from Pabst Brewing Company.
Suit to enjoin Elevator Trust.
Suit to abolish monopoly of ST. Louis
Bridge and Terminal Company.
Suit to punish for rebates given to
Sugar Trust.
Contemplated suits against hard and
soft coal combinations.
Rebate suits contemplated against
Standard Oil Company and many rail-
roads.
Indictment of persons in Fertilizer
Trust.
1t promises to be a period of great
activity. not only for the law officers
Of the Government but for the legal
profession. to whom the accused will
look for their defense. The Admins
ration has evidently decided that the
time for temporizing is past and that
a series CT heavy blows must be de-
l!vered under the Interstate Commerce
act and tic Sherman Antitrust act.