The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-11-15
Meat Packers Make Fur
ther. Effort to Avoid
Trial.
DELIVER ATTACK
ON SHERMAN LAW
Surrendering to United States
Marshal, Packers Appeal for
Writ of Habeas Corpus,
Hoping to Get Case Di-
rectly Before SUI
preme Court.

Chicago. November IA further
| effort of the indicted Chicago meat
packers to avoid trial and to have de-
| clared unconstitutional. void and of
no force the Sherman antitrus. law,
was made to-day The latest move
was surprise to the government. and
i, consisted in the surrender to the
United States marshal OF the packers
and an immediate appeal to United
states Circuit Judge C. C. Kohlsaat
for a writ of habeas corpus. The argu-
| ments Will be heard on Thursday.
The request for decision on the
constitutionality of the Sherman anti
trust law before undergoing trial was
said to have been taken as neces-
sary step to carry the case before the
United States Supreme Court without
the cost or delay of n trial.
Violations OF the fifth, sixth and
eighth amendments to the United
states Constitution. ambiguity and al
legged failure of the act either to ere
ate an ofensc against the government
or SO to define what It set up as an
onense In manner that would enable
the citizen to know when he erred
the Sherman law as the law was re-
Gently Interpreted by the United States
supreme Court in the Standard Oil
and Tobacco cases
CriticiEes Sherman Law.
Attorney John S. Miller. who, as
! chief counsel for the packers, conduct
cd to-day's court action, criticized the
sherman law as net large enough
| to catch all possible Offenders and
leAvel n ha
say who rightfully can be detained
\ and who set at-large." 10y assissy
Oh the ten packers Indicted. all but
j. ogden Armour were temporarily In
custody while the petition was heard.
The nine were:
Louis F. Swift, president of Swift &
| Company. 5-
Edward F. Swift. vice-president
| Swift 6 Company.
Charles R Swift. director of Swift G.
Company.
Edward Tilden. president National
| Packing Company.
Arthur Meeker. general manager Ar.
| mour & Company.
Edward Norris. president Morris &
Company.
Francis Fowler. director Swift &
Thomas J, connors, director Armour
| & Company.
| Louis II. Herman. manager Morris &
Company.
Depends on Jury's Within.
The petition for writ of habeas
corpus goes into the allegation of in
| sufficiency OF the State to set I'm n
crime. and it lays more stress on what
| the attorneys for the packers char
acterize as the citizens inability to
know whether he Is a law-breaker or
! not before a jury trial. Along this
latter line, the petition said:
Tho alleged criminality of the al
! legged transactions complained of In
| the Indictment Will depend entirely
reasonableness or unreasonableness
| OF the particular Case; IL will depend
| not on any standard erected by the
| law which may be known In advance,
but on one that may be created by the
whim. prejudice or arbitrary views of
a jury.
There is no set standard fixed, or
attempted to be fixed. to guide the
| citizen to a knowledge OF his guilt or
innocence of an offense charged before
IT has been adjudicated.
The act violates the sixth amend
ment to the Constitution OF the United
States. which requires that the petit
TONERS severally shall be informed of
the nature and cause of the accusa-
ton
1t is charged further that the act
attempts to establish as a crime acts
not criminal. but civil in their nature.
The large number of witnesses neces-'
sary to trace the multitudinous trans
actions of a national business Is point
ed out as an indication of the great
cost Il trial would impose. both to the
defendants and to the prosecution.
hence the request that the constitu-
tionality OF the act he determined.