The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1909-04-24
ATTORNEY GENERAL WICKER.
SHAM SAYS NO WRONG WAS
INTENDED BY MONOPOLY
Action of Attorney General, Formerl,
Counsel for J. Pierpont Morgan,
Attracts Criticism.

firms saying that no public service will
be served by pressing the suits, be-
cause he is convinced the trust did not
intend to do wrong.
The action of the new attorney gen.
eral, who was formerly personal at
torney for J. P. Morgan and partner of
Brother Henry Taft, of Wall street,
New York, has attracted criticism
aplenty from the Roosevelt forces. 1t
is declared it was the intention of the
Roosevelt administration to proceed
with the prosecution.
The circumstances in the beef trust
cases are worth relating. Under
Roosevelt, James r. Garfield was sec
rotary of commerce and labor and he
gathered a vast amount of evidence
against the beef trust. This was turn
ed over to L. S. District Attorney Sims
of Chicago, and presented to the fed
eral grand jury for indictment.
The work of preparing and present
ing the evidence had not been con-
Guided when Roosevelt went out of Of
flee on March 4. Now Wickersham
has informed the packers they will not
be prosecuted.
The beef trust prosecution was the
biggest rebate case pending when
Roosevelt left office. Carried to it's
logical conclusion it would have meant
the trial of number of prominent and
rich Chicago men interested in pack
ing business-a trial in which con-
viction would have meant fines and
Jail.
Understands critics argue that the
grand jury in Chicago and United
States District Attorney Sims in
charge of the case would be the best
judges of the evidence which has been
heard during the last three months.
Lawyers are not wanting who look
upon the action of Attorney General
Wickersham as a clear usurpation of
authority. In any case, it is declared,
it is a straining of the law to protect
the members of the beef trust from
threatened criminal prosecutions.
The reason for his action, as given
by Attorney General Wickersham, is
his belief that members of the beef
trust had no intent to violate the law.
He says:
ct does not clearly appear that your
company intended to use this method
of computing the cost value of it's
products as device to affect the
charges of the carriers transporting
such product. and the department does
not believe that any public service
would be rendered by making at this
time a test case of past transactions
Exception is taken to the Attorney
Generals assertion that the cases in
mention are test cases. 1t is assert
ed that Morris & Co, and three other
large packers of Chicago, were prose-
cuted under indictments almost eXace-
w similar to these now being quashed.
Each company was fined $4,000, and
paid the fine.
This case went on appeal to the
United States supreme court, Where
without any division of the bench. the
convictions were sustained. The point
of criminal intent in such cases was
treated by the supreme court in these
words:
"There is a class of cases within
which we think the one under con-
sideration falls, where purposely DO
ing a thing prohibited by the statute
NAV amount to an Offense (Armour
Packing Co. VS.. the United States, 2O9
U S. at page $50
Morris. Armour, Swift and Cudahy
are old offenders. The acts for winch
Wickersham gives immunity were COM
mitted. in many instances, since the
decision of the aforementioned case
by the supreme court. The packing
companies concealed evidence Of their
transactions by their practice of keep
inc a secret as we'll as a public set OF
books.
eff Understands action is carrying
out the Roosevelt policies declared
member of the interstate commerce
commission who was an admlrer OF
Roosevelt. deliver me from having
them further carried out"
Another member of the interstate
commerce commission said:
eft is the moral effect of this act
of the attorney general which is most
70 he depIored. With an example OF
this kind before them it is not to De
expected that prosecuting attorneys
throughout the country are going 10
display much zeal in the preparation
or Inauguration of new cases. the arm
of the Chicago prosecuting official
raised to do his duty, has been struck
down. not by the common enemy put
hv his own chief; by the new attorney
general of the United States.
Let no one suppose that the secret
rebate has been wiped out. Hundreds
of thousands of dollars are paid every
month to favored shippers under Varl-
Gus deceitful guises. The Implied
promise of immunity from the penal
sections of the Hepburn act will be
the signal for the secret rebate TO re-
new it's youthful flourish"
Hugitt Coming.
Walla Wallans are expecting big