Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-03-11
OIL OCTOPUS
NOT GUILTY OF
REBATE CHARGE
JUDGE ANDERSON DECIDES IN
FAVOR OF STANDARD
$4,000, 1000 FINE CASE COMES TO
SUDDEN ENDING
Court lnstructs Jury to Return Verdict
Exonerating Indiana Branch
from Blame in Accept
ing Refund

fBy Associated Press.
CHICAGO, March 10.-"Not guilty'
This is the result reached TO-DAY
~ in the governments famous SUIT
against the Standard Oil company Oh
Indiana. ,1,o,.a;,,
The suit of the government, wherein
the defendant company at ono llil1e
faced a fine of $29.240,0oO at the hdl .1ls
of Judge Lands on charge OF ilaNinS
accented rebates from the Chicago ~
tItop rai1road. came to an end alb
ruptly. ..h,,,, th.s
case was brought after reversal by tile
limited States court of Appeals IN
.structed the jury to find Vefdlct ol
not guilty not
Judge Anderson's decision was no'
altoeether unlocked for, he having pre-
xionsiv announced that the proof re-
lied upon in the first trial was lncohlc
petent. and it was with something oi
an air of hopeessness that Dlstfiel
Attorney Sims and his assistants az
tempted to show the 4admlsslolllty %
the Illinois classification to prove the
existence of legal rate oil 10 CENTS
Was a Vital Point
This was a vital point in the govern
lnent's contention.
Assistant District Attorney Wilker-
son admitted that the prosecution
could not supply the proof deemed
necessary and suggested dismissal.
Attorney Miller then moved tor an
instruction verdict of not guilty. THIS
was ordered.
The decisions of Judges Grosscup.
Baker and Seaman of the United
States circuit court of appeals reVers-
ing Judge Lands. together with tho
action of the United States supreme
court in refusing to review the de-
cision of the court of appeals, played
an important part in disposing of the
case.
AS to whether prosecution on seven
other indictments still pending against
the company will be instituted Dis
trict Attorney Sims would not express
an opinion, stating that this rested en-
tirely with the attorney general
His Charge to Jury
Judge Anderson's charge to the jury
Gentlemen of the jury have
made up my mind to end this case.
You, as jurors, have perfunetory OF
flee to perform, and the evidence you
have heard as presented by the gov
eminent may have given you some
opinion of your own as to how this
case should be decided. You have no
arbitrary powers. Neither have L as
a federal judge any such power. ! am
bound by the law as you are.
The Standard Oil company has been
indicted and the government AYERS in
its Indictment that a rate of Is cents
on shipments of oil was a fixed rated
standard and that regardless of this
the Chicago & Alton railroad gave
the defendant concessions. allowing the
defendant to ship oil over its road at a
rate of cents. The government failed
to prove this charge.
THE Standard Oil company is
charged with criminal offence, and
therefore before jury can find the de
PENDANT guilty it must be satisfied be
yond all reasonable doubt that there
was a definitely fixed rate of Is cents.
Proof Not Sufficient
"The proof offered by the evidence
does not support the charges relative
to the Chappelle, Ind, shipments. Con-
sequently the defendants cannot be
found guilty on charges that embrace
shipments from that point to st. Louis.
Proof of publication has not been
made with reference to the alleged IL
legal shipments of oil from Whiting,
Ind, and consequently the defendants
cannot be held OH charges of accepting
rebates on shipments from that place.
altogether, | feel that the govern
ment has failed to sustain the allega-
tions in the Indictment against the oil
company. Should the jury find the
defendant guilty I would set aside such
verdict instantly, as | know the Unit
ed States court of appeals would"
The foreman of the jury then signed
the following verdict:
I'VE. the jury, find the defendant not
guilty"
Sims Disappointed
United States District Attorney Sims
admitted he was greatly disappointed
at the outcome of the case.
"As to further prosecutions of the
Standard Oil company" he said, Il
will be unable to make a statement I'M
til I have conferred with the attorney
general at Washington.
eve made the best fight we could
and hung on until the last, but THE
court ruled against u.s.
Moritz Rosenthal, counsel for the
Standard Oil company, in commenting
upon the verdict, said.
"The verdict is intensely satisfactory
to us, as it shows that a rate of IS
cents was never fixed by the Chicago
6, Alton railroad.
ut shows. further, that no legal rate
was in existence at the time the al
legged concessions were received by the
Standard Oil company
"Therefore the company committed
no legal or moral wrong in accepting
scent rate.
"Morally, as well as legally it is
found not guilty, aud that is the most
satisfactory verdict that could have
been returned"
Opinions of Decision
The federal authorities said tonight
that Judge AndersOn's ruling would in
validate class tariffs and make it i'm
possible to convict "A shipper for viola
lions of class tariff regulations
Judge Peter S. Grnsscup, who wrote
the opinion of the circuit court of ap-
peaIs, upon which Judge Anderson
based his action, said:
1.-THE thing for the government to
do is to do away with classification
in the regulation of tariff rates aud
make the railroads file tariffs that
specify the rate on each commodity
without regard TO classification
This might mean great cost to
the railroads, hut 7 know nothing of
that. Changing Of tariffs. however
means particular changes to meet con-
ditjons and means no more OF a COM
plete change than is made in different
editions of a telephone directory"
Judge lands had nothing to say
concerning the decision
xA,1,r OE ERROR FOB ApPEAI