The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1909-04-08
BRIEF TELLS HOW STANDARD
HAS VIOLATED THE LAW

BRIEF TELLS HOW STANDARD
HAS VIOLATED THE LAW
ST. Louis, Mo-. April 1.-THE govern
ment's brief in the case OF the United
States against the Standard Oil
Company of New Jersey. sets forth the
history Of the company from it's incep-
ton to the present time. The declara-
ton is made that the testimony shows
that the various defendants have from
the first pursued Il system of unfair
competition against their competitors,
whereby the independent companies
selling and marketing petroleum have
either been driven out of business or
their business so restricted that the
Standard Oil company has practically
controlled the prices. II monopolized
the commerce in the products of pc
troleum in the United States.
This system, it is contended. has
taken the form Of price cutting in
various localities. While keeping up
high prices or raising them still higher
in other localities where no competi-
ton exists; of paying rebates to custo-
mers as a part of their system of price
cutting; of obtaining secret informa-
tlon as to competitive business. large
ly through bribing railway employees.
and using their secret information to
procure the countermanding of orders
of independent producers, n to facil-
itate the price cutting policy: of the
use Of socalled Independent companies,
that is, companies held out by the
Standard OIL company as independent
which are engaged in price cutting,
While the Standard Oil main
tains the price through Its we'll known
companies and other abusive compet-
tive methods against the competitors.
The Standard Oil company, the brief
alleges, is particularly able to carry
on this predatory competition for the
reason that it does not sell it's product
1 n II cnJfr11 11url,atc NJ. thrn,,oh- n,lir-
airy channels, as most other ordinary
manufacturers. 1t market its products
to the retailer in every village and
community i'll the United States and
it sells directly to the Ii
does from So to 90 per cent of the
business of the United States. leaving
about 10 to 10 per cent for all It's con
petitors. 1t is also held that the tes-
tinony taken in the Standard Oil pros
ecutions shows that that company
through q mpa in which it owns
a majority Of the stock (the Galena
Signal OIL company also controls
about 971a per cent of the lubrica-
ton of railroads throughout the United
States, and that it sells to most rail-
roads at enormous profits. This is evil
denced by the net earnings of the
company, which in 1906 We're about
112 per cent on the capital stock ac-
tually paid in and about 105 per cent
on a liberal valuation of the capital
used. 1t is also shown by the furth-
er fact that the prices to these
railroads are substantially double the
prices charged to a few favored lines,
notably the Pennsylvania. For instance
the brief says, the New York Central
railroad for 10 years has paid about
100 per cent per gallon more than the
Pennsylvania. 1t is also stated that
wherever the Standard can do so, II
has made contracts whereby it has
either marketed a part or all OF the
product Of the independent ref1neries
or has limited the output OF the
same.
Its Enormous Earnings.
One of the evidences of the monop-
oily OF the defendants, 1T is charged, is
it's enormous earnings. These earn
ings are summarized as follows: The
Standard Oil trust and the Standard
Oil company on ar investment of $685.
024,4S0 had earned up to the end OF
1906, $S38,7S3.7S3. Adding the esti-
mated profits Of 1907 and 1908, we have
dollars earned by this company in 81
years with an original investment Of
about 500, O00, 900.
Further on the brief says:
ut has usually been claimed for
large corporations in this country that
they have increased business and de-
creased the cos to the consumer, but
IA AliO ASC VI AK oN4llOilO VII COIll.
pany it has during the 10 or Is years
actually increased the price to the re-
taller, and this a good deal more than
the prices of other products through
out the country. although the price Of
its ray material and cost Of manu-
facture n ale during these years has
increased very little. il any
The brief, which occupies nearly 200
printed pages, covers with much detail
the history OF the company from its
original organization to the present
time, n asserts that its methods have
been in gross violation of law, and
asks the court in view Of the circum-
stances Of the case, to annul the con-
tracts under which the Standard Oil
company operates and dissolve the cor
poration.
The brief is signed by George w.
Wickersham, attorney general; E~s.k
b. Kellogg, Charles B.. Morrison, Cor
denio A.. Severance, ]. HARDWOOD
Graves, special assistants to the at
torney general.
100 MILES OF RABBIT FENCE.
London. April IA Norwich firm is
completing LOO miles Of wire netting
for the Australian, Queensland and Vic
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