Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1910-03-16
GREAT NEW JERSEY CORPORA
TON WILL OPPOSE DECISION
OF COURT.
EMINENT COUNSEL TO ARGUE
FOR AN1 AGAINST FORMER
JUDGMENT.

Monday.
That is the day set by the supreme
court of the United States to hear ar
guments on the appeal of the Stand
ard Oil company of New Jersey from
the adverse judgment of the United
States circuit court for the eastern
district of Missouri, which ordered
the dissolution of the New Jersey
corporation as an illegal combination
and monopoly in restraint of inter
state commerce. To point out the al
legged errors of the circuit court in its
findings and in its decree, the keenest
intellects within command have been
procured. To argue for the aff1rmance
Of the decision of the lower court, Mr.
Wickersham, the attorney general of
the United States himself will head
brilliant array of counsel for the gov
eminent.
The circuit court announced grave
findings against the seven individual
defendants, John D. Rockefeller, Will
liam Rockefeller, Henry NJ. Flagler
Henry II. Rogers, John d. ArchbOld.
Oliver H. Payne and Charles H.
Pratt, the Standard Oil company of
New Jersey and other defendant com
panies
The court found that in 1899, by an
exchange of stock by the seven indi-
viduals, the Standard Oil company of
New Jersey acquired the legal title
to a majority of the stock of 10 COM
panies, which in turn controlled a
large number of others, ali but one
engaged in the oil business.
What it found as to this combina-
ton was:
That since 1899 the affairs of all
these companies have been managed
by the principal company as the bust
ness of a single person, So as to fix
for them the price of crude oil, the
rates for transportation and the sell
ing prices of its products.
That the par value of the com
bined capital stock in 1899 was about
Sl00000,000 and that in 1903 it was
5150,0OO0OO
That II of these companies owned
54.565 miles of pipe lines.
That six of these companies had
1914 selling stations throughout the
United States.
That these companies from 1899 to
1897 produced more than one-tenth OF
The crude oil obtained in this country.
That they owned and operated
more than one-half Of all the tank
cars used to distribute it's products.
That they manufactured more than
three-fourths of all the crude oil re
fined in the United States.
That they transported more than
four-fifths Of the petroleum derived
from the Pennsylvania and Indiana
oil fields
That they marketed more than
four-ffths of all the Illuminating oil
sold in the United States.
That they exported more than
four-ffths of all the Illuminating oil
sent forth from the United States.
That they sold more than four-fifths |
Of all the naphtha sold in the United |
States
That they sold more than nine
tenths of all the lubricating oil sold |
to railroad companies in the United |
States.
On this finding the court decreed:
That the organization of 1899 was q !
combination or conspiracy in re-
straint of interstate commerce in pc !
troleum and its products, such as the |
first section of the Sherman antitrust |
act declares is Illegal: that the seven |
individual defendants. the STANDARD |
Oil company of New Jersey and 80 |
other companies had entered into 3 |
combination or conspiracy to monopo- |
Ollie and had in fact monopolized a !
sUb2jantiE3 part of interstate com |
mer5e IN Violation of the second sec
ton OF the Sherman antitrust act:
that So other companies accused we're
proven NOT to be in this combinati ,r
The court enioined the principal
company and its directors from exer- |
cising any control over the subsidiary
companies; it enjoined the subsidiary
companies from declaring or paying
ana dividends to the principal COM
pany, but not from distributing rat
ably TO the shareholders of the princf
ipal company the stock of the subsid-
larry company: it enjoined those
found TO be in the Illegal combina,
zion" from continuing in it or forming
a new. combination by means Of aggre.
cation OF the physical properties in
the hands of one member of the com
oination from engaging in interstate
commerce until the combination was
discontinued.
The counsel arrayed in defense of
The Standard Oil includes John G. Mil F.,
burn, of Buffalo, n. Y. in whose home
Mckinley died: D. T. Watson and
5ohn G. Johnson, leaders of the Penn.
sylvania bar: and Moritz Rosenthal,
the legal pillar of the STANDARD Oil in
terestS.