The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-08-07
ATTORNEY GENERAL
IS HANDICAPPED BY
ANTITRUST STATUTE
Prosecution of Lumber Com.
bines Unsatisfactory Under
Law Barring Witnesses.

Sioux Falls, S. D., Aug. SIT is alto-
gether likely that Attorney General
Clark will ask the next session OF the
South Dakota legislature to pull some
of the fangs OF the states ANTITRUST
law. The difficulty with the statute Is
that it is too ferocious. 1t frightens
the game before the prosecuting Of
flcials have any chance of bagging 1t.
In the earnestness of their desire to
discourage the formation of monopolies
within the state, the legislators appear
to have succeeded too well.
This Is a conclusion suggested by the
experience of the attorney generals Of
fee In trying to carry out the legisla-
ture's instructions to Investigate and
run down any lumber octopuses that
might be found browsing on the pub
lie purse.
The attorney general and his assist
ant. P. w. Dougherty. of Dell Rapids.
have done all they could in trailing al
legged lumber trusts: But the people OF
killing when their game bag Is opened
in the next session Of the legislature.
In the first place the allowance of $500
would not finance very exhaustive In
generals office found itself continually
tripped UP by the anti-trust law itself
After defining what shall be consid-
40 OF t0e 1)ena1 COue provinces.
Statute Conflicting.
'Any person or persons who shall
be a party to any such unlawful COM
bination, agreement Of trust, either as
principal, agent, attorney, employe or
otherwise, shall be deemed guilty of a
felony, and upon conviction thereof.
shall be punished by fine not exceed
ing $1,000, or Imprisonment In the
states prison not exceeding three years.
or both, such fine and imprisonment at
the discretion of the court"
1t will be observed that the law
equally guilty with the proprietor.
The statute is SO sweeping that it takes
in every one who would have first
hand information about the formation
or working of any monopoly
Consequently, whenever the attorney
generals office in this investigation
would ask any employe or agent or Of
fcer of lumber company any Ques-
lated this law, answer was promptly
refused on the ground the witness
might be incriminated. At every tu1n
the attorney general was embarrassed
force. Special investigation was made
in Moody and Day counties, though
the inquiry was really state wide ir
scope. A charge was brought in Day
county, but it remains to be seen
whether the evidence obtained by tho
state is regarded as sufficient for 8
conviction.
The attorney generals Office natu-
rally is inclined to take the same lead
as that used by Attorney Genera,
have found that price lists, unidenti-
fed by any heading or signature, were
sent to all members of the Northwest
ern Lumber Mems association and thai
one member absolutely refused to in
wade the territory Of another, however
distant he might be.
The defect in the South Dakota anti.
trust act is not such as can be easily
remedied. The difficulty might be
avoided by setting up an immunit,
bath, but so far at least it has not beer
in good working order. If the law i.
to be modified it must be done care
fully to put in a loop hole large enough
for the state to get through and OBJ
tain evidence, but not big enuogh fo
| the real hackers of unlawful combina
/ tons to escape through.