The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1910-06-23
COTTON men INDICTED
BY The Government
True Bills Returned Against
Prominent Bulls
BAD BREAK IN PRICES FOLLOWS
Charged With Forming Pool to
Raise Cotton Prices ArtificiaIly
in Violation of Anti
Trust Law. l.,.

New York.-The government has
come out in the open in It's attempt
to prove that manipulating the cot
ton market is against the law. James
A. Patten, OF Chicago, and seven
lesser figures in the speculative field,
have been indicted, with conspiracy
in restraint of trade under the Sher-
man antitrust law. The indictment
was returned by special federal
grand jury and handed up before
Judge Hough in the United States
circuit court. Five of those indict-
ed-Patten, Eugene B. Scales, Frank
B. Hayne, VIM. P. Brown and NJ H.
Rothschild-ga bail of $1,000 as
required, through counsel. For the
other three who were neither pres
ent in court nor represented by
counsel, bench warrants were is
sued. They are Sydney J. Herman,
Robert M. Thompson and Chas. A.
Kittle
Immediately after the indictment
was announced there was an excited
break on the New York exchange,
July and August deliveries declining
about $3.50 a bale, July selling at
14.81 and August at 1875 as against
1912 and 1854 at the close of the
business on the previous night The
bull leaders, however, appeared to be
in no manner disturbed by the gov
ernment's action and by their buying
orders helped to rally prices during
the last few minutes. July closing
1892 and August 14.49 bid or about
IL to IA points up from the low
level of the day.
Five counts are embraced in the
Indictment which is in blanket form
and contains 10000 words. The first
count charges that the defendants
Unlawfully did conspire with certain
corporations not here in indicted to
demand arbitrary, excessive and
monopolistic prices for cotton
Describing the inside workings of
the alleged conspiracy the indict-
ment says the conspirators were to
unlawful combination, in the form of
an agreement, under which they
were severally to purchase for ship
ment from the South to New York
all the cotton not directly assimi-
lated by the demand of domestic and
foreign spinners and manufacturers
in the course of business; in other
words, as much as they could pur-
chase from day to day without Sc
riously enhancing the price, but new
ertheless to such an extent that to-
gether they would long before the
end of the crop year have so much
cotton in their possession in the city
of New York that they could "by rea-
son of the abnormal and artificial
condition thus produced in said
trade and commerce, severally de-
mand arbitrary, excessive and mo-
nopolistic prices.
There is appened to the indict-
ment what purports to be an agree
ment between Brown and Hayne as
parties of the first part, and certain
spinners as parties of the secon%
part, through the medium of which
it is alleged cotton was illegally corr
nered.
Because of failure to obtain the
100000 bales specified, the follow
ing was subsequently amended to
call for total of only 100000 bales,
$4,000 for each of the parties
Hayne and Brown, however, agreed
to pay for an additional $4,000 bales
after the required 150,O bales had
been supplied.
Patton's name does not figure in 4
the contract at all, although he was
popularity credited with being the
chief leader. 1t is authoritatively es-
timated that the bull leaders during
the progress of the campaign ham
died nearly 10000 bales Of cotton,
representing a value of about $780,
900, 900.
Arthur r. Marsh, president of the
New York cotton exchange issued al
statement in which he said he had
received a communication fer the
United States attorney general say
ing that the proceedings were direct
ed merely to prevent corners and
were not aimed at regular business
transactions upon the exchange.
''This statement" says Mr.. Marsh
"makes it perfectly clear that mem-
bers of the New York cotton ex7
change and their customers who are
using contracts for the future del
livery of cotton made upon the ex
change in the ordinary course Of
their business need not. feel ting
slightest alarm with regard to tho
validity of those transactions. Thy
New York cotton exchange as an en-
change, has no interest or conceri
in the case at ISSUE"
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