Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1908-02-07
AFTER RAILROADS
Government Files Suit Against the
Chairman Monopoly"
PAPERS FILED In SALT LAKE
Suit is Intended to Bring About Disso'
Luton Of the Present Hartman
System.


stituted by the United States gov
ernment and the most important one
10 the entire west was filed in the
circuit court Of the United States in
Salt Lake Saturday morning.
1t is the expected suit against
what it is commonly termed the
chairman monopoly of railroads
and steamships" and Is intended to
bring about dissolution OF numer-
Gus agreements existing betwee
various railroad, steamship and hold
ing corporations.
United States Attorney Hiram E.
Booth, acting under the direction OF
Charles J Bonaparte, attorney-gen-
eral of the United State, fled the
petition or bill in equity. The
United States is complainant and
the following individuals and cor
porations are defendants: Union
Pacific Railroad company, the Ore
gon Short Line Railroad company,
the Oregon Railroad and Navigation
company, the san Pedro, Los
Ang is aid Salt Lake Railroad
compa j, At, ,hi, To- eka d
Santa { R4I"ad company, the
Southern Pacidr Railroad company,
the Northern p, fc Railroad com
u 10y Earmefs Loan and Trust COM
pauy, il IL. Efarsiman, Jacob Schiff,
Otto Kim, jana StiIlman, Henry
II. Rgers, Henry G. Frick and
WiIllm a. Clark.
Th bill is published in pamphlet
form and contains so pages of print
ed natter. 1t sets forth iii minute
deai the various agreements, con-
tncs and opera IONS 10y which the
efendants have managed TO acquire
IN alleged monopoly of the trans
portation business of the west, IN
violation Of the Sherman law, an
act of Congress, approved July 2,
1890, known as the antitrust law,
intended TO 'tprotect trade aud COM
merce against unlawful restraint and
monopoly"
Through acquisition of stock the
Hartman crowd is alleged to have
gradually obtained more and more
p wer until the roads and steamship
lines mentioned became one huge
system, whose arms reaching in al
directions were not competitors.
With assumption of power and con
troll through stock acquisition, came
agreements and contracts on freigh
and passenger rates; contracts tc
s build and not build and SO &C
&ipfnitum until, it is claimed, TIN
VT west was dependent upon ont
set Of nsRp for. its transportation ia
cilities I'd privileges. This, il
rough, ls what the bill sets fortl
aud it holds that AL this is in direc
violation Of The laws of the natiol
4 aid asks that all agreements, cor
tFaetsand stipulations be ct asld
AID pullifed and that the Unio
Pacific, Oregon Short Line, SAINT
Fe and all other lines mentioned a
in the combine be re stored 10 th
position they occupied prior to 100
when they were all competitors
striving to win from each other tn
bGsiness arising in their respectiv
territories.
One of be representative agree
ments which the government al
pears determined to have explaine
is the re ed aare az | made b.
tween "A all Lax Route an
Hartman roads (SouLheru Paeifi'
Oregon Short Line, etc.) Und'
this arrangement a blanket agre
ment was reached, it is alleges
which would effeotually kill az
competition on the part of the Sa
Lake Route for 90 years. The Sa
Lake Route, under the allegs
Hent between Senator " lila