The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1911-06-26
L(jMDERMEn
Are INDICTED
Charged With Violating the
Antitrust Law.
FOURTEEN ARE ACCUSED
Secretaries of Retail Associations Ac-
cused of Conspiracy In Controlling
Price of Lumber.

fTiCG Oh LuIiipSi'
Chicago. June "a - Secretaries OF
fourteen retail lumber dealers asso-
Citations, comprising the Lumber Sec
retaries' Bureau OF information. and
representing dealers organizations
from Pennsylvania to the Pacific, were
indicted by a special United States
grand Jury for alleged violation OF the
Sherman antitrust act.
Three secretaries in the organization
received immunity for testifying be-
fore the grand jury.
Each Indictment is in two counts
The first charges conspiracy among
the retail lumber dealers to Interfere
with and restrain trade between the
manufacturers and wholesalers and
the consumers; the second count
charges conspiracy to suppress and
eliminate the competition that should
exist between the wholesalers and the
retailers and the consumers.
Those indicted were:
Arthur L. Holmes, Detroit, secretary
Michigan Lumber Dealers association
and editor of trade paper, The Scout.
George P. Sweet, secretary OF the
Michigan association.
Willard G.. Hollis, Minneapolis, sec
rotary of the Northwestern Lumber
Z mems association.
Harry A. Gorsuch, Kansas City, sec
rotary of the Southwestern Lumber
mems association.
Bert Critchfield, Lincoln, Neb., sec
rotary of the Nebraska Dealers asso-
citation.
E. E. Hall, secretary of the Nebras-
ka association.
Harry S. Scarce, Mooresville, Ind,
secretary of the Indiana Lumber Deal
ers' association.
H. H. Hemenway, Denver, Colo, sec
retarv of the Colorado and Wyoming
association.
Louis J. Heilman, also secretary OF
the Colorado and Wyoming associa-
ton.
H. S. Adams, Chillicothe, Ohio, sec
rotary of the Union Association OF
Lumber Dealers and of the Ohio Asso-
citation of Retail Lumber Dealers.
B. n. Hayward, Columbus, o., also
secretary of the Ohio association.
A. L. Porter, Spokane, Wash, secre-
tary of the Western Retail Lumber
mems association.
r. P. Bransford, Union City. Tenn,
secretary of the Retail Lumber Deal
ers' association.
A. C, Rightor, Pittsburg, Pa, Lum-
Of DnnncUl
vania.
The three who received immunity
for testifyins were:
Paul Lachmund, Milwaukee, secre-
tary Wisconsin association.
George W. Hotchkiss, Chicago, sec
S. Z = -: !; - .sii;1 : -.
Supply Dealers association and secre-
tary of the Secretaries Bureau.
George Wilson Jones, secretary of
the Illinois association.
The Lumber Secretaries Bureau OF
Information, it was learned by the
grand jury, was incorporated in Hi
nois in 1905. It's membership was con-
fined to secretaries of retail lumber
dealers associations in all parts of the
country.
The aim of the alleged conspiracy
according to the indictments, was not
to maintain prices or to prevent COM
petition between the retail dealers,
but to put a complete stop to the di,
rect sale of lumber by wholesalers to
consumers.
Violation of the Sherman act was
found not in any trust of capital, or
anything approaching trust as the
term has been applied in recent litiga-
ton Instead, according to the govern
ment, it was a so-called trust of
power" alleged to have been manifest
ed in the secretaries of the retailers
organizations. This power, it is charg
ed. was exercised by means of an al
legged biz cklist, said to have been
maintained by the secretaries bureau.
This alleged blacklist, the government
charges, contained the names of such
wholesalers and manufacturers as vio-
lated the alters rule forbidding the
direct sale o the consumer.