The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-11-29

New York. November 2s.-The Fed
eral government to-day began one of
its most important actions against
great corporations which are said to
/; have violated the Sherman antitrust
law. Henry a. Wise. United States
district attorney, filed in the United
States District Court for the Southern
District OF New York petition asking
for the dissolution of the American
Sugar Refining Company and twenty.
nine other corporations which com
pose the so.called sugar trust, The
petition charges an Illegal combination
in restraint Of trade. and asks from
the court relief in whatever form may
be necessary, including receivership,
II deemed advisable.
The thirty companies composing the
sugar combine have an aggregate cap
itaiization OF 100000. coo and control a
large percentage of the output of sugar
in this country. The combine is able:
the government alleges, 10 hx prices
arbitrarily. The petition charges tina:
for years the companies have violated
the law. and have oppressed competi-
tors and ground them out OF existence.
Railroad rebates and customs frauds
are mentioned as devices which were
employed to raise the combine to the
commanding position which 1t occupies
to-day.
In Court Two Years.
The present suit. which, tits est1-
mated, will be IN the courts for two
years before a final adjudication is
reached. Is the result OF many weeks
OF preparation.
District Attorney Wise made his In
vestigations under the direction of At
torney-General Wickersham. and spent
several days in Washington last week
in conferring with the Attorney-Gen-
eral on the final plans. The suit is
expected to rank In Importance with
those OF the government against the
Standard Oil Company and the Ameri-
can Tobacco Company, which a-e now
pending IN the Supreme Court
Opposed to the government In tne
struggle will be some OF the most able
corporation lawyers of the country.
James NJ Beck. former Assistant United
States Attorney-General and now coun-
sci for the American Sugar Refining
Company, will lead the attack on the
governments position.
One of the allegations Us that the late
II. O. Havemeyer, OF New York, long
head OF the sugar combine, received
$lO,000,0Oo common stock OF the Ma
tional Sugar Refining Co., OF New Jer
sey, as a gift at ths time the corpora
tion was formed to take into the com-iI
bine four Independent concerns-:he
National Sugar Refining Company. run
by B. H. Howell's Son & Company; the
New york Sugar Refining Company, or
Long Island City, n. j., operated by
Claus Dosher; the Mollonilauer Sugar
Refining Company OF Brooklyn, and the |
W. ]. McCahan Sugar Refining Com
pany OF Philadelphia chose compa
nies up to 1900 wera Independent, and
is Is said the American Company was
determined to acquire tscnl.
Gift of Sl0,OOO,OOO In Stock.
Under plan inauSuruted by MT. /
Havemeyer, John Il. Parsons and James
II. eost, tbs National Company was
formed and took over the four plants.
Mr.. Port obtaining options on them.
When the new stock was delivered, the
petition sets forth, Post delivered |
100000 shares Of common stock, the
entire issue, with par value OF $10.-
100000, to Mr.. Havemeyer The peti-
ton says that these shares were is
sued in the first instance contrary co
law in violation or the corporations
franchise, and for no consideration. as
both said Post and Havemeyer then
well knew
The government also alleges that
when the American Company took oyerj
four Philadelphia companies - the
Franklin Sugar Refining Company, the
Spreckels Sugar Refining Company, the
Delaware Sugar House and the II. g.
Knight Gompa,ly--Mr, Elavemeyer ana
his brother. Theodore f1nvemeyer.
bought IS per cent. of the stock OF the
Spreckels Company, and then sold 1t az
a large profit to the American Com
pany. of which both We're directors.
In general. the petition charges that
the defendants ''for some time past
have been and are now engaging In
an unlawful combination and conspir-
acy to restrain the trade and COM
merce among and between the several
States and Territories OF ,he United
States and with foreign nations IN raw
sugar, sugar beets re fined sugar. mo-
lasses. syrups and other hy-products
of raw sugar and sugar beets, and to
the same. Such unlawful
combination and conspiracy Is the re-
suit and outgrowth of a series OF
acts extending over period
of many years, and participated In by
respectively, In the manner
and to the extent hereinafter more fully
set forth In participating in the vari-
ous acts, agreements and combinations
described, all Of the de-
tendants have been actuated hy wrong
On, a DIR rasN H.