The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-07-07
John D. Rockefeller Swears He Knows
Little About Standard Oil Company,
of Which He is the Head
HIS ASSOCIATES ADMIT PARENT CONCERN
CONTROLS MINOR CORPORATIONS
Great Throng Besieges the Chicago Courtroom TO
Catch Glimpse of the Famous
Oil King

NJ
shown seat to the left of the Judges
desk and was we'll up into the room
before hrs arrival was noticed. There
| was considerable excitement among tho
crowd and some confusion resulted.
| from the efforts made by all the spec.
tatoIs to obtain a quick view of him.
He looked around with some curiosity
for moment and then commenced
whispered conversation with one of his
| attorneys.
United States Marshal Hoy ap-
preached and asked, care you com
Portable here, Mr.. Rockefeller9'
Perfectly, thank you. I am all
! right; he answered.
William Rockefeller, who had been
sitting behind his brother came for
ward In response TO signal and sat
by the side Of John D. John d. Arch
bold sat beside William Rockefeller.
and grouped around them were G. NJ
Pratt, secretary of the Standard Oil
company Of New Jersey: William P
Howe and T. c. Barstow, assistant
treasurer of the company; Charles T.
White, assistant secretary; J. A. Mof-
Fat, president Of the Standard Oil com
pany Of Indiana; W. p. Cowan, vice
president, and l. W. Stahl, secretary
and treasurer of the same corporation
Other witnesses in the group were II.
b. FELTON,, president, and ". NJ Hutch
lson, secretary and treasurer of tho
Union Tank line Fred A. Wann, for.
mer general freight agent of the Chi
cago L. Alton railway, and a number
OF attorneys completed the group.
John D. Is Interested
Before the hearing of the Standard
OH company case began. Judge Landis
disposed of several other matters,
among them the sentencing OF several
prisoners for violation OF the postal
laws Mr. Rockefeller showed great in
terest IN these proceedings, listening in
tently 10 every word.
When the Standard Oil investigation
case was called. the attorneys for the
company, together with F. G. Gault.
stepped forward to the front of Judge
Lands SIS desk, Here Attorneys Miller
and Rosenthal of counsel for the com
pany made an earnest plea that Mr.
Rockefeller be excused from the stand.
They explained to the judge that he
could give no information that could
not be better obtained from some other
source. He declared that he could, in
fact, tell nothing of what the Judge
desired to know,
The Judge, however, refused TO va
cate the subpoena, and insisted that Mr.,
Rockefeller, being in court, he should
take the stand and testify to the best
of his ability.
Attorney Miller, for the company, OF.
fered the objection TO the impending
proceedings that they were entirely
outside the jurisdiction Of the court.
Judge Lands overruled the motion.
Court Is Insistent-
Mr.. Miller then declared that the de-
Tense objected to every question put to
every witness during the proceedings.
The court replied:
Each and every objection is over
ruled and an exception allowed'
Frederick A. Wanu, the former gen
eral freight agent of the Chicago &
Alton railroad, was then called and
oil should have been shipped from
Whiting. Ind, to East st, Louis.
The witness replied that he had is-
sued instructions for a 10-cent rate.
After somo further questions relating
% tariffs and tariff sheets, the witness
was excused and Harry r. FELTON,. pres
dent of the Union Tank line, took the
stand,
He was asked if he knew anything
lbout the payment of money to the
Union Tank limo by the Chicago &
Alton for the use Of its cars during the
period covered by the indictments in
he trial recently closed.
The witness said that the railroad
company paid to the tank line com
)6hN VI al Coub lVi Tue
lauliug of both empty and loaded cars.
lie was asked by Judge Lands, "Does
he Union Tank Line company own
hese cars that are used in the trans
'ortation Of oili''
Eyes, sir. -
"Do you know whether it's stock is
wned by any other company?"
Shows Rockefeller's Interest.
"The major portion of the stock OF
he Union Tank line is owned by the
standard Oil company of New jersey
'fWhat proportion of its stock?'
"Oh, by far the major portion-the
interest in it.
''What Is the outstanding capital
took of the Union Tank Line com.
auv9'
''The original Investment was So
00, 900, but it is in debt S5,O00,000 on
op of that, 1t has not paid divi-
end since 1901, "
Is that due to the mismanagemeut
your predecessor
"No, sir; it is due to the fact that
lere is no money in running, as an
,vestment, tank cars at three-quarters
a cent mile
This concluded the testimony of Mr..
elton, and as he left the stand Judge
andis called;
John D. Rockefeller. -
Swears to Tel Truth.
Mr. Rockefeller rose hriskly from hig
at and walked rapidly toward the