The Colorado statesman., 1909-07-03
PROSECUTION OF
SUGAR COMPANY
OFFICERS OF THE GREAT MON
OPOLY ARE INDICTED BY
THE GOVERNMENT.
UNDER ANTI-TRUSTLAW
EVIDENCE BROUGHT OUT IN PEN
SYLVANIA SUGAR REFINING
coMPANY'S SUIT.

New York.-Through twelve men
smpaneled as federal grand jury, the
United States government Thursday
laid the groundwork for another gi-
gantic antitrust suit in the indict-
ment of the American Sugar Refin-
ing Company as a corporation, six of
it's directors and two prominent law
yers.
The defendant company and the in
dividuals were charged with conspir-
acy in restraint OF. trade under a Grim
inal clause of the Sherman antitrust
law which provides as a penalty upon
conviction fine of not more than $5,-
600, or imprisonment for not more
than one year, or both, in the case of
individuals, and a fine of not more
than $4,000 in the case of a corpora
ton.
The individuals indicted are Wash
ington B. Thomas, president of the
American Sugar Refining Company;
Arthur Donner, Charles H. Senff and
John E. Parsons, all of New York;
John Mayer of Morristown, N. j., and
George II. Frazier of Philadelphia.
All are directors of the company
The others indicted are Gustav d. Kis-
sci and Thos. B. Barnett, counsel for
Adolph Segal, whose plant, the Penn
sylvania Sugar Refining Company,
was shut down by the trust and
whose fight in retaliation, with the
testimony brought out in this suit for
S3O,OOO,OOO damages, recently settled
out of court, largely furnished the ba-
sis for the government prosecution.
The defendants will answer to the
indictments in the United States Dis
trict Court Tuesday next
The indictment contains fourteen
counts, alleging conspirtcy and re-
straint of trade. The closing of the
Segal plant, the details of the $1,25O,-
600 loan by which this was accom-
plished and various details of the
transaction are recited.
The defendant company, it is assert
ed, controls ninety per cent. of the
sugar trade in the United States.
gist of the charges, most of whida
has been brought out heretofore in the
Segal investigation, is that the Ameri
can Sugar Refining Company and the
individuals Jointly indicted with it ac-
complished the control of the Pennsyl-
vania Sugar Refining Company by in
ducing Segal to borrow from Kissel,
acting as broker and the agent for
a lender, unknown at the time the
loan was made. whereas the lender
hD Iafn
row $1,250,000 and to transfer to Kis-
sci with majority of the stock a vot-
ing power as the holder of 10000
shares of stock of the Pennsylvania
company. 1t was further stated that
Segal was not aware that the Ameri-
can Sugar Refining Company was the
real lender and that he did not sus-
pect the designs of the rival corpora
ton.
Segal, as the defendants then well
knew, the indictment continues,
would be dependent upon the divi-
dends from the business of the Penn
sylvania company to pay such interest
and repay the borrowed principal and
in case the business of that company
was shut down, Segal's financial af-
fairs would be put in a ruinous con
dition and the hold upon both Segal
and the company by the defendant
would be continued and greatly
strengthened
Kissel, it is charged. in pursuance
of this power. attended a stockhold-
ers' meeting of the Pennsylvania COM
pany December 4, 1903 at Philadel-
phia and voted as a director in favor
of the adoption of a resolution clos
ing up that company's business.
The indictments further complicate
the affairs of the American Sugar Re
filming Company which was recently
forced to settle the suit brought by
Segal and only a short time before
was heavily fined by the government
in the false weighing cases.
The action also dispels all doubt as
to the governments attitude, which
was considered uncertain when Unit
ed States District Attorney Wise
sailed for Europe recently.