The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-03-24

9. The United states Supreme Court. by a long series of decisions. has held that this law applies to common car riers, to business corporations and to business men, and also to labor orr ganizations and to labor men, The Supreme Court has also decided that any action in restraint of trade, 90 far as it applies to Interstate com merce. is unlawful. whether such action be reasonable or not.
 g. The bill submitted by The Ma tional Civic Federation does not at tempt to change the legal status of anything condemned as in restraint or trade under the Sherman antitrust act; but it aims to provide a way by which. under certain conditions. com binations and contracts in restraint of trade that are not unreasonable may be saved from attack. The bene- fits and immunities offered by the proposed bill. therefore. will be in the main confined to those who register in accordance with the terms of the bill Common carriers may register with the Interstate Commerce Com missioner of Corporations In the De- pertinent of Commerce and Labor. It Is proposed to amend Section [ of the sherman antitrust act by cutting out the provision for three-fold damages. reducing the amount that can be col lected to simple damages. as under the common law. Everybody whether registered or not. will get the benefit of this provision.
 1. Both corporations for profit and having capital stock and also corpora tions not for profit and not having capital stock may register, but neither are obliged to do so. This description is intended to include cooperative orr ganizations, as we'll as business cor porations, agricultural and labor or- ganizations. and the like. If they do register. they get the benefits of the act. If they do not register. they re- main under the sherman anti-trust law, unamended. In order to regis ter corporations for profit and hav- ing capital stock are obliged to give such information in regard to their financial condition, their contracts, and their corporate proceedings. as may be prescribed by general regula- tions from time to time to be made by the President of the United States. Corporations not for profit and not having capital stock, sn order to register must set forth their charter or agreements of association and by laws; the place of their principal of- flee, and the names of their directors or managing officers, and standing committees. if any, with their resi- denees. Any corporations or associa- ton that it registered may be stricken from the registry If 1t shall fail at any time to file the statements or to give the information required under this act. or to comply with the re- quirements of this act. or In case in- formation furnished by 1t shall be false in any material particular. Any R~& to remove 1t from registry has an ap- peal to the courts.
 5. Being upon the registry. the cor- poration, or association. or individual, gets certain immunities as to the past. and the benefit of provisions by which 1t can ascertain as to future contracts whether these will or will not be att tackled by the government as in un- reasonable restraint of trade. As to future combinations or contracts. the government is given thirty days in which to disapprove any contract or agreement filed by a corporation or association registered under the act: and if within thirty days the govern ment does not disapprove the con- tract, the government cannot there after attack 1t except through the courts. and then only on the ground that 1t is in unreasonable restraint oe trade. Contracts or agreements caII- ing for new business combinations must be filed. Contracts or agree ments entered into in the ordinary course of business may be filed or not at pleasure. Such contracts. if not filed, do not get the benefit of the immunities of the new act. but no- body Is obliged to file such a con tract unless he wants to do SO
 6. As to the past, 1t is proposed that all pending actions may be prose- cuted and defended to final effect. precisely as though the sherman anti trust law had not been amended; but that no new proceedings shall be be- gun under the Sherman antitrust law on account of any contract. agreement or combination made prior to the pas sage of the amending act, unless the same be in unreasonable restraint of trade; and no suit at all shall be be- gun by the United States as to regis tered corporations or associations under the sherman antitrust law after one year from the passage of the amending act.
 :. In view of the doubt that has been raised in the minds of many as to whether the sherman anti-trust act does not make even a strike un- lawful, clause is included in the bill distinctly reserving for labor all rights that they have now. irrespective of the sherman antitrust act, to combine and to strike and to make trade agree ments; and reserving for employers of labor the correlative rights to com pine and to discharge their employees.
 8. The foregoing summary of the bill is a iayman's summary, which does not attempt to use legal terms with legal exaetness. It is believed. however, that with this explanation of the scheme of the bill. the provisions of the bill itself will be more readily understood.