Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-03-30
rHn WAY rRoM MISSOURI.
Something's About the Nan who
Pumped the Standard OF Company.

EMAANEN NMN NNAMMANN WI NWAANAAts
II am neither a professional reformer
nor trust buster. I am attorney general
OF the state OF Missouri, and as such I
! propose 10 see that all corporations which
do business within our borders keep within
the law"
This Is the declaration Of Herbert 3.
Hadley, the young lawyer who pursued
the magnates OF the Standard Oh COM
pany and compelled them to admit that
! the company owned and controlled the
waters-Pierce and the Republic oil com
/ panies. who with the controlling company
monopolized the oil market OF Missouri
Mr. Hsdley. who is barely 81 years of age,
had been pitted against an array OF legal
! talent representing the best that the oil
/ trust can gather. The aggregate yearly
income from the practice OF the gentle
men opposed to him Is estimated to be
something like 10000 AS attorney general
Of Missouri Mr.. Hadley draws a salary OF
$500 a year.
There Is an interesting story about the
! way in which Mr.. Hadley happened to run
across the trail OF Standard Oil in his
state. says the New York Times. II was
during a legislative investigation last spring
Of terminal charges at st. Louis and he
was counsel for the investigating COM
nittee. The manager OF the Waters-Pierce
Oil company was testifying. He accident
ally let slip the information that the Stand
| ard Oil company had no agency in St
Louis.
That was enough for the attorney gem
eral
Doesn't it strike you as strange" he
| demanded. quick as flash, that you have
no competition in this field from the Stand
ard?'
The manager couldn't see anything pecu-
/ liar about the monopoly enjoyed by the
Waters-Pierce company, but a few days
later, while i'm Kansas City. the attorney
general learned that the concern was not
represented there. Putting two and two
together he decided that there was some
relation between the companies and be-
fore he was through he had learned that
the Republic was also in the combine and,
with two smaller concerns, were Standard
pawns.
Then came the quo warranto proceedings
to forfeit the charter of the Waters Pierce
company, which is a Missouri concern, and
cancel the licenses OF the Republic OIL
company and the Standard Oil company OF
Indiana. On the heels Of this proceeding
came an application for an injunction re-
straining the Standard OF Indiana and the
Waters-Pierce company from dividing up
the state, and the Republic and lesser con-
Germs from operating at all. The Injunction
was granted temporarily and is now in
force.
1T will continue in force" Mr.. Hadley
says: They don't want to fight it, Why
the time was when man would have to SO
fifty miles in Missouri to get his oil, no
etc AoYe 4,
away. Now one can buy oil wherever Il
is for sale. There is no longer any such
thing as a division Of territory When I
get through there will no longer be any
such thing an Oil trust. 1t may take
time, but I've four years to keep after
them"
Herbert S. Hadley was born in Ohthe,
Kan, in 1871. His father was in the milling
business and owned several farms Young
Hadley commenced his education in the
olathe public schools. Then he went to
the State university at Lawrence. Finally
he entered the law school at the University
of Chicago, where he was graduated in
1894
Immediately he entered private practice
in Kansas City. He had made himself
heard from when, in 1898, he was appointed
first assistant to the city counselor. After
two years in this position, during which
time he began to take part in politics. he
was elected prosecuting attorney. During
his tenure in this ONCE he successfully
prosecuted the Lulu Kennedy case, which
was heard throughout the country His
term over, he went back into practice for
himself and was appointed as attorney for
the Kansas City street railways.
When the republican convention of Mis-
souri, was held last year he was enjoying
practice of $4,000 or $4,000 a year, and
was power in the counsels Of his party
He attended the convention. having no idea
whatever OF seeking ONCE. This is the way
he tells Of his nomination and election:
There were three or four candidates for
attorney general. None OF them seemed
TO be satisfactory, and was going up front
to try and have name withdrawn when
| they caught sight of me. The first thing
knew was nominated, and before 1 could
protest was picked up bodily and carried
/ to the rear of the room. ! couldn't get
back until the voting had commenced the
other candidates having withdrawn. Then
l saw 1 was in for it.
Party leaders urged me not to decline
the nomination. They said It would be a
| mistake, ana tndt could Withdraw later.
In a moment of weakness I agreed TO this
proposition. Then l went home. and when
I saw how my friends felt about It, 1 be-
gan to think thatI ought to run. The same
party leaders told me 10 make the race and
il by any chance. l was elected, l could
resign afterward.
when ] decided to make the race /
ran the best knew how. On election day,
after casting my vote early. l went out
hunting. Hunting is my favorite recrea-
/ ton. l was in the thick of a covey OF
quail, way out in the woods, when a man
on horseback rode up to me and gave me
a telegram from my wife. back in Kansas
City. The operator had mixed the message
up, and all that I could make out was
| come home at once I was pretty badly
scared for a minute, for ] have two little
ones at my house and l feared that one
OF them was sick,
II go on my horse and galloped back
to the nearest telephone station. While I
was trying to get Kansas City I heard a
man talking outside the booth
1t does beat hell, he was saying. I
never believed the republicans would carry