The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1911-12-07

lOTlueT one llu-lOlI cOmpdny lS III
yided into two, one of $825.000 cap
ital and the other OF 100000 The
one snuff company Is divided into
three companies, one with capital
Of $l5,000,000; another with cap
ital OF sS,000,O0O; and third with
capital of sS0O0,000 The llcorice
companies are two. one with cap
ital OF $5,75S,00 and another with a
capital of $2,O00,000 There Is, also,
the British-American Tobacco com.
pany, a British corporation. doing
business abroad with capital Of
S26.OOO,O00 the Porto Rican Tobac.
co company with a capital OF
$l,SOO,000 and the corporation OF
United Cigar Stores, with a capital
Of $9.O00,000. Under this arrange
ment each of the different kinds of
business will be distributed between
two or more companies. with a d.
vision OF the prominent brands In the
same tobacco products. so as to make
competition not only possible but
necessary. Thus the smoking tobac
co business OF the country Is divided
so that the present independent com
panies have 2l.39 per cent. while the
American Tobacco company will have
33.OS per cent, the Liggett and
Meyers 2005 per cent, the Lorillard
company 22S2 rer cent. and the
Reynolds company 266 per cent. The
stock OF the other thirteen companies.
both preferred and common, has been
taken from the defendant American
Tobacco company and has been dis
tributed among its stockholders All
covenants restricting competition have
been declared null and further per.
formance of them has been enjoined.
The preferred stock Of the different
companies has now been given vot
Ing power which was denied It under
the old organization. TIE ratio Of
the preferred stock TO the common
was as 7S to 40 This constitutes
very decided change in the character
OF the ownership and control Of
each company.
In the original suit there we're TWEEN.
ty.nlne defendants who we're charged
with being the consplrators through
whom the illegal combination acquired
and exercised its unlawful dominion.
Under the decree these defendants
will hold amounts OF stock In the va
rious dlstributee companies ranging
from III per cent. as a maximum TO
2S1s per cent as minimum. except
In the case of one small company the
Porto Rican Tobacco company. In
which they will hold As per cent The
twenty-nlne individual defendants are
enjoined for three years from buying
any stock except from each other
and the group is thus prevented from
extending its control during that pc
-riod. All parties to the suit, and the
new companies who are made parties.
are enjolned perpetually from In any
way effecting any combination be-
tween any OF the companies In viola
tion Of the statute by way OF resump-
ton of the old trust Each Of the
fourteen companies Is enjoined from
acquiring stock In any OF the others.
All these companies are enjoined from
having common directors or officers
or common buying or selling agents.
or common offices. or lending money
10 each other.
Size Of New Companies.
Objection was made by certain In.
dependent tobacco companies that this
settlement was unjust because 1t left
companies with very large capital In
active business. and that the settle
ment that would be effective to put all
on an equality would be a division of
the capital and plant Of the trust into
small factions In amount more nearly
equal to that OF each OF the independ'
ent companies This contention re-
suits from a misunderstanding of the
antitrust law and its purpose 1t Is
not intended thereby to prevent the
accumulation of large capital in bust
ness enterprises In which sIch com
bination can secure reduced cost OF
production sale and distribution II
Is directed against such an aggrega-
ton of capital only when its purpose
is that of sitting competition. enhanc'
ing or controlling prices and estab.
fishing a monopoly. If we shall have
by the decree defeated these purposes
and restored competition between the
| large units into which the capital and
plant have been divided, we shall have
accomplished the useful purpose Of
the statute,
confiscatior Not the Purpose Of the
Statute.
Il Is not the purpose of the statute
to confiscate the property and capital
of the offending trusts Methods of
punishment by fine or Imprisonment
of the Individual offenders, by fine OF
the corporation. or by forfeiture of its
goods in transportation, are provided
but the proceeding In equity Is spe.
cific remedy to stop the operation OF
the trust by injunction and prevent
the future use of the plant and capital
in violation Of the statute
effectiveness Of Decree.
venture to say that not In the his
tory of American law has a decree
more effective for such purpose
been entered by a court than that
against the Tobacco trust AS Circuit
Judge Noyes said in his judgment ap.
proving the decree;
THE extent to which I has been
necessary to tear apart this combina-
ton and force It into new forms with
the attendant burdens ought to dem.
| ..o,o that the federal antitrust