River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1908-10-15
BONAPARTE BARES
TRUST INQUIRIES
Shows 10 of z28 Actions Under
Roosevelt Succeed and lis
Are Pending.
Democrats While in Power Started
Fifty Proceedings and Won
Only Fourteen.


made public his reply to letter from
Josephus Daniels, chairman Of the
Democratic press committee at Chicago,
asking for facts connected with trust
prosecutions by the department of JUS
tlce, including the present standing of
litigation against the trusts.
The reply gives a summary of the
cases prosecuted substantially as furn-
ished in a report made public two days
ago, a copy Of which the attorney gem
eral forwarded to Mr.. Daniels.
Criminal Case Fines $1,26O,325.
The attorney general says his depart
ment has prosecuted all cases under the
Sherman antitrust or interstate com
merce laws that have been brought to
his attention from responsible sources
where the facts disclosed warranted
such action. The attorney generals
letter says:
There have been instituted during
the administration of President Roose-
welt 223 proceedings, civil and criminal,
under these statutes. OF these 70 have
been concluded successfully, 40 have
been concluded unsuccessfully and 115
are pending. The various fines imposed
in criminal cases amount in the aggre-
gate to $1,2GO,325.
Under previous Republican admins
tratiOns there were instituted under
those laws IA civil and criminal pro
ceedings, of which 10 were concluded
successfully, 60 were concluded unsuc-
cessfully and one is pending. The
amount of fines imposed in these pro
ceedings was $S,501.
Democrats Convict Only Fourteen.
Under previous Democratic admin
istratiOns there were instituted under
these laws fifty proceedings, civil and
criminal, of which fourteen were con-
cluded successfully, thirty-ive were
concluded unsuccessfully and one is
pending. The fines imposed in these
proceedings amounted in the aggregate,
to $4,000 l could not inform you
how many corporations, in the aggre-
gate, have been defendants i'll these
cases without an inquiry which would
be attended with considerable delay.
"The number undoubtedly is large,
since in most of the civil proceedings
there have been numerous defendants
of this character. For example, in the
suit in equity against the Standard Oil
Company of New Jersey and others
there are about seventy corporations
as well as a number of individuals
among the defendants.
1T is, of course, needless for me to
say that the mere fact corporation or
association is called trust by John
Moody in his manual does not prove,
or even tend to prove, that the organ
ization in question or its members have
been guilty of any violation of federal
laws. Neither is such guilt suggested
by the fact such organization may do
n large and apparently profitable bust
ness.
Same Policy to End of Term
''The criminal provisions of the stat
ute generally known as the Sherman
antitrust law apply only to those who
enter into contracts, combinations or
conspiracies in restraint of trade, and,
although the statute provides that such
contract, combination or conspiracy
shall be none the less criminal because
it takes the form of a trust, this does
not, of course, make trusts of them
selves criminal
'Since l have been attorney general
this department has prosecuted, either
civilly or criminally, all cases of al
legged misconduct under the statutes
above mentioned which have been
brought to its attention from respon-
sible source and in which the results of
careful inquiry by competent and i'm
partial officers disclosed the existence
Or such facts and of such obtainable
legal evidence to prove them as afford
ed reasonable hope of success in such
prosecution The policy of the depart
ment will be the same during the re
mainder of my term of Office"