St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-11-01
Gigantic Legal Struggle.


ment of the United States brought
suit against the ''steel trust, :"
asking for the dissolution of
the United States Steel Corpora
ton and all Of its constituent or sub
sidiary companies on the charge
that they have combined in viola
ton of the Sherman law to main
tain, or attempt to maintain,
monopoly of the steel business"
Thirty-six such companies are nam
ed as defendants in the suit and
such prominent men as J. Pierpont
Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, An
drew Carnegie, Charles M. Schwab,
George w. Perkins, E. H. Gary,
John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Henry C.
Prick, Charles Steele, James Gay
ley, William H. Moore, J. H. Moore,
Edmund G. Converse, Percival Rob
erts, Jr., Daniel G. Reid, Norman B.
Ream, P. A B. Widener and Will
liam P. Palmer are named individu-
ally as defendants.
In bringing suit against this COM
pany the government has attacked
and that corporation with the best
legal talent of the country at its
command is determined to fight the
case to the end. Thus it will be seen
that this is one of the greatest
legal struggles in history and is one
that will be watched with the keen
est interest throughout the country.
The beginning of this suit will Sc
riously disturb corporate business
and has already reduced the value
of steel stock by millions but the
ending of the suit will remove all
doubt regarding the rights of the
government and the corporation in
this country. This result is desir-
able if the Sherman law is to be
continued on the statute books and
it may hasten the day of proper
government regulation of such large
aggregations of capital.
The case will be a long one as
there is no possibility of a hearing
before December and there is great
opportunity for a much longer de-
lay. Meanwhile the discussion of
will be actively continued. YER
monters will be interested in the
statement of Charles A. Prouty of
the interstate commerce commission
who does not believe in trust bust
ing because no trust will stay
busted" His remedy for trusts is
government regulation. He says:
"a commission should be appoint
ed, in most respects similar to the
interstate commerce commission.
Just as in the case of the railroads,
the way to regulate industrial mono
poles is for the government to take
hold and regulate them ITSELF"
President Taft in a speech at
Chicago last Thursday evening
clearly defined his position as fol-
lows:
1 would rather cut off my right
hand than to do anything to disturb
the business of this country, especi-
ally with a motive of cultivating
political success. But we have a
condition of lawlessness to deal
with. We have had it for 20 years.
We have gone on organizing COM
binations in violation of the anti
trust law on the theory that it either
could not or would not be enforced
The Supreme Court has held that
this lawlessness must be stamped
out There is no discretion in the
executive to suspend a single stat
ute. 1t is his duty to enforce the
law and to direct the prosecution OF
those who violate it.
There is a vast difference between
uniting plants to reduce the cost OF
production and uniting to suppress
competition to restrain trade and
control prices. A jury could find
that difference in two minutes. Il
is a question of evidence and fact.
l am just now in the remarkable
position of being charged with an
attempt to destroy business by en-
forcing the antitrust statute and OF
having set up the Supreme Court tC
emasculate the statute in the iner-
est of the trusts.
l am hopeful this period of strain
soon will end, that business soon
will square itself with the law.
believe a majority of business is
already square with the law.
There is only one way that / know