The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1906-06-01
HARD BLOWS FOR
STANDARD OIL
COMMERCE COMMISSION GETS
DAMAGING TESTIMONY At
CLEVELAND.
oil TRUST GIVEN ADVANTAGE
FORMER CHIEF CLERK OF LAKE
SHORE LAYS BARE BOLD
METHOD.

Cleveland, Ohio, May pa total of
nineteen witnesses were called by In
terstate Commerce Commissioners
Prouty and Clements in the Standard
Oil inquiry here yesterday. Testimony
bordering on the sensational was OBJ
tanned from several witnesses. That
of George l.. Lane of Mansfield, Ohio,
a former employe of the Standard Oil
company, was regarded as particularly
important. According to his evidence,
Lane was for about fourteen months
in 1901 and 1902 employed by the
Standard Oil company for the particu-
lar purpose of driving all independent
oil peddlers in a dozen or more of the
principal cities and towns of Northern
Ohio out of business.
Use Fair Means or Foul.
He said he was employed by G. M.
Lyons of the Cleveland office of the
Standard. Oil company to go to certain
designat. p'aces and use every
means, f; -. or foul, to force the indie
pendents 20 quit.
"My instructions" he said, were to
kill them and | was told that If could
not do the job somebody else would be
sent to take my place. | worked in
Youngstown and surrounding small
exception of Youngstown, the indie
pendent peddlers were forced to aban.
don their business. In Youngstown a
man named William H. Vahey was en-
countered, and, despite everything we
could do, he held his trade. We gave
oil away by the barrel and tank load,
but it did no good. Valleys customers
threw it away"
Conduct Literary Bureau.
Cleveland, May 29. After three
days spent in taking testimony con-
cerning the affairs of the Standard Oil
company, the interstate commerce
commissioners, Prouty and Clements,
adjourned Saturday afternoon and
shortly thereafter started for Wash.
ington, where they are expected soon
to begin the preparation of their re-
port on the testimony taken here and
in Chicago for presentation to con-
gress.
The report, however, will not be
closed until the Standard Oil com
pany's attorneys have been given
ample opportunity to reply to the
many statements and charges put in
evidence. In the three days hearing
just completed thirty-five witnesses
have been on the stand.
Important Developments.
Saturdays developments were re-
garded as important. The first wit
ness was w. E. MacEwen. formerly
chief clerk in the car department of
the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern
company in this city. He said the
cars of the Union Tank line (Stand-
ard Oil cars) were given a great ad-
vantage over rival cars in computing
mileage and freight bills.
The bills of one would be computed
according to one standard of distance
and those of the other according to
another.
The result was that the Standard
was enabled to save a considerable
sum. MacEwen said he was with the
Lake Shore road for several years
and when he left it he started to work
with the Peerless Transit company, a
small rival tank line.
Forced Concessions.
Knowing how mileage and charges
were being computed, he went to the
proper Lake Shore officials and asked
for the same advantages extended to
the Union Tank line. The officials
he testified, made light of his request
ridiculing him, and said he was show
ing great ignorance of things.
Not Discouraged, however, he OBJ
tanned copies of the complications OF
car reports, which were duly for
warded to the cleveland Office OF the
Standard Oil company, and taking
them to officials OF the Lake Shore
finally succeeded in accomplishing
his object.
Special Counsel Monnett endeav
ored to show by several witnesses
that the Standard maintained a press
bureau for the purpose of subsidizine
Ohio Newspapers.
Malcolm Jennings, who conducts
an advertising bureau at Lancaster
Ohio, admitted that he made advertis
ing contracts with Ohio newspapers
for the Standard Oil company, but
said they were no different from those
made for any other concern.