The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-03-13
EXPOSES THE
 STANDARD OIL An Q ster Suit Begins in Y Ohio. ? YMANTLNG OF RIVALS Reports Were Secured on All Its
 Competitors. R. T. Cooke. Former Agent of the Great Trust. Tessiaes as ts
 its Methods of Hold F. inE Monopoly.

Cleveland. O.. March 12-The ab- sorption of rivals. dismantling com peting plants. the gathering of infor- nation regarding the customers of op- ponents and the method in which some information was obtained from rail- ways by the Standard oil Company. were the features of the hearing be- fore Special Examiner Ferris. here to- day in the Governments custer suit against the standard oil Company.
 Richmond T. Cooke. of Indianapolis. Ind. Secretary and Treasurer of the National Refining Company, testifying agent for the Standard oil Company at Columbus. Ind, in Iss4-s6, and later spent several years with the company in an executive position in Indianapolis and Cincinnati.
 He said that while at Columbus in- formation was given him by a man named Taylor. employed by the Psnn- sylvania Railway Company, regarding shipments of oil received by rivals He said he was informed of all oil han. dled in his territory and used the ir- formation for the purpose of tracing the customers of competitors and at- tempting to '1ine them up'' for the Standard oil Company.
 Cooke said he never offered Co cut prices for their trade, but used regu- lar methods. such as saying his oil was better and could be obtained easier.
 Cooke testified that he received as much credit for reporting the names of rivals as if he had made the sale for the Standard oil Company.
 Reports em Rtvals.
 While in Indianapolis, he said, re- ports were handed him by boy. re- garding the shipments of rivals in and out of Indianapolis. These reports were somewhat of a mystery to him but he was of the opinion that they came from the once of the State oil Inspector. Cooke also stated that for eS month the Standard oil Company received Q report daily from q freight handler in Loganaport. Ind, as to tho oil received by one FronsyeT. &n in. dependent dealer in Lognnspora. The witness related the history of several competitors who were eventual. ly absorbed by tho Standard oil Com. pany. He said sthe Capitol Oil Com. pany of Indiapapolis. Standard agen- cy, was bought by one Kelley. for the Standard. with cash furnished bv the Standard. and in this way became . part of the business of Kelley, who was supposed to be operating an independ. ent tank wagon business. The Capi- toi CompApy nao maoe inroad8 upon Kelley's business and he finally entered into a contract with the Standard oil Company.
 Cooke told of the starting of 'bo- gusS independent companies for the purpose of selling oil to those who were preJudiced against the Standard oil Company and the starting of sew erai bona fide independent companies. which later were purchased hy the Standard oil Company and the plants closed.
 The testimony of John J. Shea of Terre Haute. Ind. an independent deal CT, was concluded. Shea said his profits as a dealer were usually be- tween 80 and 100 per cent. and that he made good living, although he had been opposed by the Standard oil Company, but not effectually. He still is in business.