The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1908-11-13
Held to Be Trust in Restraint
Of Trade.
Great Decline In American To-
bacco Co S Stock Result
of Decision.


Tobacco growers Of Kentucky vii
hail with delight the news that the
American Tobacco Company has been
declared to be trust, in restraint
Of trade. by the United States Circuit
Court. in New York, and II is believ-
ed the decision will be sustained by
the Supreme Court and many tAink
In q short time this monster corpora
ton. which nus caused 50 much sur
fering and destitution among The to-
bacco growers every where, will be a
thing of the past Upon the report
of the decision, common stock Of the
American Tobacco Company fell 81
points. The following is statement
published concerning the details OF
the decision:
The contention of the Government
that the American Tobacco Company
is a trust, operating in restraint OF
trade and competition in violation OF
the Sherman antitrust law. was sus-
tanned today in decisions handed down
by Judges Lacombe, Coke and Noyes in
the United States Circuit Court here.
Judge Ward handed down a dissenting
opinion.
In the suit against the American To-
bacco Company, which was prosecuted
by James c. McReynolds and Edwin ?
Grosvenor, special assistants of the
United States Attorney General, the
Government asked for an injunction
dissolving the combination OF the
American Tobacco Company and its
six subsidiary companies on the
ground that IL was. illega, i'll thar 1t
operated in restraint OF trade and
commerce.
The Government also asked the
United States Circuit Court to appoint
receiver to wind up tfe affairs IF
the allied corporations.
While finding that there was an il
legal combination as charged, Judges
Iacombe, Coke and Noyes, in their
opinions, say that injunctions should
be issued against all the defendants ex-
cept the United Cigar Company and
the r. P. Richards, Jr., Company. The
injunctions are, however, stayed pend
ing an appeal TO the United STATES
Supreme Court
The petition asking for the appoint
ment Of a receiver TO take charge OF
the companies included in tina com
bine, was refused IS being "imprac-
ticable and wholly unnecessary"
The Imperial Tobacco Company and
the British Tobacco Com
pany, English corporations, were in
cluded in the Governments suit, but
the complaints against these CON-
panies were dismissed.
Judge Lacombe,i in his decision said;
There can be little doubt that the
10 Federal statute had been violated.
Each one of the purchases of CON-
panies complained of in the petition
was a contract and combination in
restraint of competition existing
when it was entered into, and thai
is sufficient to bring it within the
ban of this drastic statute"
In addition to the American Tobacco
Company the defendants named in the
Governments suit included the I'm
perial Tobacco Company, the Bridsh-
American Tobacco Company, tine
United Cigar Stores Company and
fifty-niue other small corporations.
The suit was filed July 10, 1907, and
asked specifically for the appointment
of receivers for the various defendan'
companies.
1t was alleged that the Imperial To-
bacco Company which controls tire TO
bacco trade of Great Britain, foughl
the efforts of the American Tobacco
Company TO sell its goods in thai
country, and that as result tht
Imperial and the American com
panies organized the British American
2 Tobacco Company to control the trade
outside of Great Britain and America.
The American Tobacco Co. was
formed under the laws of New jersey
in 1S94.wen the old Aemrican Tobac-
co Company the consolidated cotmpany
= and the Continental Tobacco Com
pany were merged under single hea'
Under an agreement reached at tina
time the parent company acquired tb'
nlants, factories. property and trade