The Vinita daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1913, 1911-01-13

It's life, the Standard Oil company
through its attorneys, yesterday argu
ed before the supreme court of the
United States against the proposed
dissolution of the Standard Oil com
pany of New Jersey. For three hours
John G. Milburn of New York address.
ed the court. Today Frank B. Kellogg
of Minnesota will present the govern.
ment's side of the controversy. The
aruments will not be concluded until
next Tuesday
Mr.. Milburn's task was to present to
the court the facts in the case, but he
departed from the facts now and then
to show what alleged wrongs the affirm
ance of the dissolution decree of the
lower court would incur.
In his history of the chaotic condi-
tions in the oil business between 1860
and 1870, due, he said, to an over-pro-
duction of refining capacity, Mr. Mil
burn introduced to the court the char
acter of John d. Rockefeller.
There was out there in Cleveland"
he said, "a young man in the early COS
with small amount of money which
he had saved, who possessed the gift
of genius. He had the genius for busi-
ness just as there is a genius for war,
for poetry or painting: That man was
John D. Rockefeller. He saw that this
overproduction of refineries was to be
met by volume of business so as to
withstand the lower profits" He then
told how Rockefeller allied himself
with Andrews, practical oil refiner,
and how with the exercise of Rookie
feller's genius for business and their
consequent good standing among fin
anciers, they grew rapidly.
Mr.. Milburn dwelt particularly upon
the period of acquisition, which he said
closed in 1879 the trust agreement of
1892 and the new arrangement of own
ership in 1899. Acquisitions never had
been made, Mr.. Milburn told the court,
with an intent to restrain or to mono
police interstate trade Most of the
purchases were made, he said, before
1879.
I'VE thought that II was only the de.
cent thing to do if a man came to us,
said Mr.. Milburn, with a proposition
to sell out to buy his plant at is ap.
praised value. Often it was practical
ly worthless, and we could have per-
mitted it to dry rot in his hands"
He denied the charges of the govern
ment that because the Standard Oil
had the advantages of alleged prefer
ences from railroads during the period
of acquisition that it had, should now
be punished. The contracts between
the railroads and the Standard were
not in restraint of trade, he contended
when viewed in the light of the days
in which they were made"
The trust agreement of 1892, where
by trustees exchanged their certificates
for the stock of the various common
owners" of Standard Oil companies
came in for much attention. In con
nection Herewith Mr.. Milburn main
tained that the supreme court of Ohio
did not decide that the trust" was
illegal but simply required the Stand
ard Oil company of Ohio to withdraw
from the trust agreement.
His extended remarks about the re
organization of the Standard Oil com
pany of New Jersey in 1899, which is
the thing which the decree of the
lower court would undo, as a violation
of the Sherman law, was summarized
by Justice Hughes.
"The net result" suggested Justice
Hughes, "is that the Standard Oil com
pany of New Jersey after 1899 stood in
the place of the trustees, and those who
held the certificates issued by the trus
tees thereafter held the stock of the
Standard Oil company of New Jer
sey?"
Precisely" said Mr.. Milburn, 1T is
quite simple when you understand it
You see there was the same body oi
common owners of the property botf
before and after 1S99."
At this point he referred to the argu
ment of the Standard upon which it il
pinning its faith in the present contro
versy, that the new arrangement o.
1899 did not suppress competition il
any way, because the properties be
fore 1899 were not competing, they be
, ing owned by the same persons.
One objection to the decree which
Mr.. Milburn voiced was that of com
pelling the Standard Oil company O
New Jersey to give to each of its stock
holders a proportionate share in eacl
of the corporations whose stock it hel(
the small holders of stock would bt