The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-11-28
is IT A TRUST J?
Topeka Fruit and Produce Com
pany in Court.
Attorney General Charges Com
binatiOn Is Unlawful.
TELLS OF REGULATIONS
E. r. Hays, Commission Man, on
the Stand.
TELLSOF REGULATIONS
Jefferson County Farmer Com
plains About Potato Sale.

A jury was empaneIled and the in
! PRODUCTION of testimony began in the
! case of the state against the Topeka
| Fruit and Produce Brokerage com
pany in the district court today. At
| torney General Fred S. Jackson is con-
| Quoting the prosecution under the Kan
sas antitrust law. Conviction would
impose the penalty of fine and I'M
prisonment, the minimum being $500
| fine and 80 days Imprisonment. The
| commission men alleged to compose the
controlling company are samuel H.
Lux, w O. Anderson, Frank NJ. Cope,
Cord E. Smith, Geo. P. Whiteker.
| Byron Willcuts, T. E. Armstrong and
| Burrell Collins.
short delay was caused after the
| jury had been empanelled by the at
torneys for the defense, Hazen ~
Cav, entering objections to the taking
of testimony under the information
filed by the attorney general. Mr..
Jackson, in filing his information De-
| cember 16 1909, had neglected to sign
it. Judge Dana sustained the obJe2-
| ton of defense but allowed the attor-
ney general to sign and refile the pa
pers.
The charter of the defendant cor
poration is dated April %, 1909. The
| only commission men of Topeka who
are not members are E. r. Hayes of
sol North Kansas avenue, and Allyn
Commission Man on Stand.
E. r. Hayes was the first witness
called by the state. He testified that
he had been a member of the Topeka
Fruit and Jobbers' association, an Or
ganization existing prior to the To-
peka Fruit and Produce Brokerage
company and of which the latter is
| continuation.
The meeting of the two organizations
! is the same, he said, and is upstairs at
| 1875 Kansas avenue Hayes was secre-
l tary and Samuel Lux hartman at the
| last meeting of the old association when
| the organization of the new company
was discussed. Mr. Hayes said he had,
| at first, favored the new corporation
| plans but later viewed it with disfavor
| and refused to join when certain pro
| visions of the bylaws were discussed.
What objection did you have to the
| bylaws?" asked Mr.. Jackson.
1.-The way of handling business. If
| to fill, I would have to go to the asso-
citation to get the potatoes. I said 1
was opposed to such regulations and re-
fused to join the association"
| What was the purpose of the old or
] ganization?"
1T was organized for the purpose of
buying carload lots and dividing them
| up among the members. We had men
| to look after the cars and when one
| company wanted it's share it was Civ.
en-
How were these lots paid for?'
Each member paid an equal amount
of the cost
rs that the plan followed by the new
| company
Il do not know about the business OF
| the new organization"
DO you know who managed the buy
ing and selling?"
"Mr Collins was engaged from Kan
sas City as manager at a yearly sal
ary.'
Had Price Lists.
Your old company had schedules of
! prices did it not?"
I'VE usually had price lists.
| One of these was introduced as evil
! dence by Mr.. Jackson.
Mr.. Hayes denied that certain mem
| bers of the defendant company had
| been to see him in regard to his tes-
| timony. He also said he knew moth
/ ing about a certain celery market
manipulation last December saying
he had not handled celery. He told
/ of an apple deal, however, in which
/ he had bought a load of apples from
a farmer, who, on the way to unload,
was approached by George Whiteker
( with a higher price The farmer ac-
[ cepted the larger amount and was un-
/ loading at the Whiteker place when a
marshal stopped him with writ of
replevin sworn to by Hayes.
The witness also told of the cab
4 bage market conditions last winter.
THE market price was about $3.50 per
cwt," said Mr.. Hayes, I had not been
1 handling it, but I had a lot sent me
to sell and in order to move it I cut
the price to $1.25 or something like
( that They then began cutting and
4 finally sold at IS cents a hundred.
Their prices were uniform were
they not?"
Il think so"
Had you not tried to buy from
them ?"
yes. They wanted $1.1O or $125."
Where did you buy?"
/ I'm Kansas City"
| what did you pay?"
"I paid As cents"
| On cross examination the witness
said he did not know whether the new
company had adopted the bylaws, to
which he objected, or not.
Farmer on the Stand
F. c. Bates, a farmer and potato
grower of Jefferson county, was next
called to the stand. He told of an in
! teresting deal with Anderson & Arm
| strong in the summer of 1909, after
| the organization of the new company.
/ ''I talked to Mr. Collins l think it was
! over the telephone, offering Anderson
! & Armstrong a carload of potatoes.
They named price and I sent the car.
Later L received letter demanding
that I stand good for a loss on the
car. We wrote a number of letters
and finally to end the trouble I paid
| the loss they claimed"
Il The method employed by the Ander-
son & Armstrong company to urge the
farmer to pay the loss was exposed by
| Mr.. Jackson. The loss was claimed
for rot and small potatoes. Mr.. Jack
son read a letter to the jury which the
II company had sent Bates.
4 The company had written him that
his potatoes had been brought to the
attention of DR.. Crumbine of the state
board of health and that his letters
had been placed in the doctors hands.
II They s11oro-eSfa that he might settle