The Idaho scimitar. [volume] (Boise, Idaho) 1907-1908, 1908-08-01
A Triumph of Monopoly.

Accustomed to the determinations of law and the
Interpretation thereof in favor of extensive mono
poisc combinations of capital the interested public
though disheartened was not disappointed over the
announcement that Judge Lands had been overruled
by the circuit court of appeals at Chicago in the
Standard Oil rebate case
Judge Lands had imposed a fine of $29, 100000,
based upon proof of guilt under 1,462 counts in in
dictments against the company for accepting rebates
from the Chicago & Alton Railroad company, fixing
the penalty at $4,000 for each offense.
Each count in the indictment against the Standard
Oil company represented a carload Of oil shipped
from Whiting, Ind, to East ST. Louis the Alton
road, at a secret rate of cents hundred pounds
third the rate charged independent shippers
who did not know of the advantages enjoyed by
their competitors They paid 1s cents, the published
rate
For three years. according to court evidence, the
oil trust enjoyed this secret rate, and during that
period the earnings of the corporation, through the
enjoyment of the rebate learned by Judge Lands,
amounted to $2OO,OOOOOO.
Technically, the Standard Oil company, of Indiana,
was the defendant in the action before Judge Lands,
the Indiana company being of the many ten
tacles of the New Jersey octopus In establishing
basis for the dimensions of the fine imposed, Judge
Lands found that the parent company could stand
the enormous fine imposed without seriously i'm
pairing its capital
The court of appeals held that the Standard Oil
of New Jersey was not trial and that the court
below erred in assuming that it was when fixing the
fine The court of appeals also held that the division
of shipments into car load lots each representing
a separate offense, was an
The court of appeals assumed that Judge Lands
had gone beyond the privilege of judicial tribunal
in imposing fine that wiped out the assets of the
defendant company the Indiana company, and the
judge was judicially fagellated by his superiors.
But the court below dealing with the old, ori-
ginal sinner, the Standard Oil company of New
Jersey, which has made profits of $929,342,4o7 since
1882 and possessed at the time of the sentence,
of a surplus of 1914, 5S4182
1t is the practice of the oil trust to divide itself
into lesser corporations probably for the purpose
of escaping such penalties the imposed by
Judge Lands and public sentiment will conclude that
he was at least morally right in aiming at the
vitals of the octopus instead of trimming off ten
tac1e that could reproduce itself.
But the higher court given technical op-
portunity to extend its protection monopoly and
Judge Grosscup, who delivered the opinion, has the
reputation of being, of course impartiay, in frame
of mind that is kindly disposed towards largely cap
ita1ized enterprises. Judges Seaman and Baker, the
other members of the court of appeals, concurred in
the opinion, so there display of judicial unani-
nifty against the conclusions of Judge Lands.
By direction of the president the attorney general
will file motion for a re-hearng of the case, the
law prohibiting the government from making an
appeal to the federal supreme court in criminal cases
The attorney general characterizes this phase of
the law as "an unreasonable restriction" and it is
popularity believed that it was fixed that way at
time in the past by forehanded law making represent