Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-09-26
Reports of a Plan to Coerce
Federal Government.
NO MORE SUITS WANTED
Menace of Financial Panic the Club
to Be Used.
FUTURE OF TAFT AT STAKE
"Big Business" Holds He Cannot Be
Reelected Unless Prosecutions
Are Dropped.

Information reaching official sources in
Washington has raised the question
whether the great trusts have set on foot
a campaign designed 10 discourage the
national administration from proceeding
with its program of prosecution of the
trusts
1t is asserted in governmental circles
that the Department of Justice. with the
knowledge and consent of President TAFT,
had planned vigorous plan of trust
busting. 1t not only contemplated prose-
cuton of several corporations. but in-
eluded efforts to send some high trust
associates To jail
The great trusts have way of finding
out what is going at the National
Capital and il was after the Steel trust
and the Harvester trust learned of the
program decided on by the administration
that proposals were made by these trusts
so to reorganize to satisfy the admin
istration as We'll as comply with the terms
of the Sherman antitrust law.
Putting on Pressure.
In the meantime suspicion has been
aroused that the great trusts have set on
foot campaign designed to discourage
the administration from proceeding with
its program.
Some of the stories that reach the Ma
tional Capital relate that the great in
dustrial combinations will precipltate a
panic rather than submit TO the program
the administration had planned 10 carry
out.
1t is worthy of note that after the At
torney General had been quoted by a
New York newspaper as saying that the
United States Steel Corporation Wa
maintained in violation of the Sherman
antitrust law, the stocks OF this COM
pany Immediately took & big tumble
Wall street was near a panic. The At
torney General made haste to say tnat he
had not said all that he had been quoted
as saying. He ''backtracked' after the
New York newspapers that speak fo'
Wall street had taken him sharply 10
task for talking In q way taat would ois-
turb big business.
The inside talk here now is that big
business will make powerful effort 70
convince the administration that 1t must
not go on with its antitrust program at
this time.
The argument is to be used, so it is
asserted, that the country Is already face
to face with business depression. and that
for the Taft administration to enter on
an energetic antitrust campaign at TINS
time would seriously disturb business.
Moreover. such course on the part OF
the administration would. according 10
big business, make the denomination and
reelection of Mr.. Taft impossible.
Other Trusts Guessing.
The reorganization of the Standard Oil
Company and the American Tobacco
Company is expected TO proceed. The
Supreme Court has said that these re-
organizations must be made. and has
In each instance fixed a time limit. The
question that is interesting many per-
sons I'm Washington is whether the
other big trusts that have been under
Investigation for years by the federal
government will be compelled to walk
the plank.
There is evidence at hand indicating
that the chief beneficiaries of the tariff
intend TO resort TO you Will ruin bust
ness" talk in an endeavor to head off
of Congress. Intimations have reach
ed the National Capital that those in
dustries that have heretofore been able
10 control tariff legislation have no
thought Of permitting legislation at
the coming session.
They still have hope of being able
10 convince President Taft that an
attempt to revise any of the schedules
on the eve of a presidential campaign,
and at time when business is gener-
ally rather unsteady, would mean in
dustrial disaster. 1t is the same old
story with respect both TO the disso-
luton of the trusts and the revision
of the tariff