The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-12-07
Criminal Proceedings
Are Begun by Attorney
General Wickersham.
SIXTEEN FIRMS
ARE INDICTED
True Bills Also Returned Against
Thirty-two Individuals Con-
nected With Trust Com
panies-Alleged They Com
bined to Fix Prices
Throughout Country.

4uIOuSuOuI NOuutIy.
Detroit, Mich, December s.-Thl
anti-trust campaign OF Attorney-Cien.
eral Wickersham shifted to Detroit
this week, with the result that dndtct-
ments were returned by the Federal
grand jury to-day against sixteen firms
and thirty-two individuals alleged to
have secured control Of eighty five per
cent. OF the annual output OF enamel
ironware, bathtubs, sinks, lavatorteS
etc, in the United states.
The criminal proceedings grew out
of a suit to dissolve the alleged com!
bination, begun by the government in
the Federal court at Baltimore. hear.
inGs being held in Chicago, rittsburs
and New York within the last forty
days. The evidence adduced In the
hearings of the civil suit was presents
ed to the grand jury here by Edwin =.
Grosvenor. special assistant to the at-
torney- general. United States District
| Attorney Frank H. Watson, Of Detroit,
and Joseph Darling, special agent OF
the Department of Justice. Secret
\ hearing began here yesterday.
| Secure Control.
| It is charged BY the Federal officiala
that as the result of ten days meet
Ing at Mt. Clemens, Mich, iast April
a fund of $1,000 was sufficient to set in
motion plan that resulted in giving
Ito the defendants control of sixteen
manufacturers and nearly 400 jobberss
representing an output OF approx!mate4
| ly s10.000,000 per year.
| Both the civil suit started at Balti>
more and the criminal proceedings be-
gun here have been instituted under
the Sherman antitrust law. The des
fzr r1ay1 S,. tt,a ,rtv tr,a RI.
| ings are as follows:
/ Standard Sanitary Manufacturing
4 Company, Pittsbnrs, Pa; A. WeiskitteI
g. Sons Company. Baltimore: the
Barnes Manufacturing Company. Mans,
lheld. o. :; the Cahil Iron Works. Chat.
ltanooga. Tenn; Colwell Lead Company,
New York City; the Day-Ward COM.
pany, Warren, O.; the Humphreyz
Manufacturing Company. Mansfield, u;
Kerner Manufacturing Company,
4 |Pittsburg, Pa. the j. L. Mott Iron
Works. New York City; AlcVay & Wall
ker, Braddock. Pa; the McCrum m-itowel1
Company. New York City; the National
Sanitary Manufacturing Company
Salem. o.; Union Sanitary Manufacture
ling Company. Noblesyille, Ind: 4.
! Wolff Manufacturing COMPANY. Chi.
cago, Ill.; Wheeling Enameled Iron
ICompany. Wheeling, w. Va; United
Estates Sanitary Manufacturing Com.
Ipany. Pittsburg, Pa.
The individual defendants include the
presidents and other officers of the
\ above concerns.
The two indictments against each de-
fendant contain six and four counts,
respectively, and charge that the de-
PENDANTS. controlling eighty-fve per
cent. OF the annual output combined 10
restrain the trade of manufacturers
and of jobbers of plumbing supplies by
lrefusing to sell to jobbers handling
the goods of so-called independents by
the fiNtng of resale prices by the divi-
sion of the United States into eleven
zones and refusing to sell to jobbers
who would not maintain the resale
prices established by the alleged agree.
mcnt of the defendants. 1t is charged
that the effect of these resale prices
| Is to make the price of the articles
manufactured by the combination the
same throughout the United States and
Ito eliminate the competition Of job
bers as we'll as of manufacturers.
Refused to Sell.
| The indictments charge also that
the defendants compelled the jobbers
/ to enter into uniform contracts and
THAT all the defendants refused to sell
| to any jobber unless he would sign
such contract.
The government officials took the
ground that the evidence taken in the
lcivl suit established that the defen-
ldants attempted to disguise their cons
bination by the subterfuge of purcnas-&
| ing the patents on certain tools ana
licensing certain firms to use these
tools.
The defendants against whom indict-
ments We're found to-day We're re-
quired to appear at once in the United
states court here and give bonds for
ltheir appearances. 4
statement by Departments.
! Washington. D. @. pecember e.