The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-11-20
CHIEF JUSTICE AsToNISHED.

CHIEF JUSTICE ASToNISHED.
The cotton corner cases brought by
the Government against James A. Pat.
ten. Eugene e. Scales, William p.
Brown, Frank Z: Hayne, Morris
Rothschild Robert NJ. Thompson. and
others. under the criminal clauses Of
the sherman act, have lust heeu argued
in the Supreme Court. In the course
of that argument the solicitor general
FOR the Government admitted that the
third count in the iEG:ctreu' against
the offenders was weak, inasnuch As IL
did not fully cover the case OF actual
delivery Of cotton. The solicitor euu
cral undertook to define tho differ,
cnce In deals in the huckGt shops
from trades on the exchange by saying
that the rul5 Of the exchange did not
exact delivery, Because oc this. he
urged. corner run on the exchange
worked in restraint oe trade by con
trolling the price, whereas IN bucket
shop deal where delivery was never
contemplated, the price Of tho con.
for Patten was quick TO see the
weakness Of this argument aud ho
dwelt forcibIv upon tho nondclivery
point. claiming that. in order to make
a case, the rules of the exchange
should require delivery, At this point
do not mean to tell me-, he said,
that the rules of the cotton exchange
do not impose any obligation to de.
liver the cotton sold The attorney
replied that the rules permitted the
seller either to deliver or settle. but
Chief Justice. who insisted that failure
to deliver was breach of contract,
and that the dealer who failed to de-
liver cotton which he had sold was
acting In a way dIscreditablc as a busi-
ness proposition. unless the buyer ac-
ccpted settlement in cash. There was
no option on the part of the seller, il
was his business to deliver. Tho op.
tion was with the buyer. who might
accept other settlement or not. There
upon the solicitor general admitted the
weakness Of the Indictment, in that he
did not allege any conspiracy as TO
sales. The attorney for the defense
pressed the point. asking if The So
licitor admitted that the several de-
PENDANTS might have sold their cotton
TO one another, there being no allega
tion in the count that there was an
agreement as'to sale and delivery.
1t is clear case that the Chief JUS
tice is on the right track in this mat
ter, 1t is also clear that the corner In
cotton might have been manipulated
precisely as suggested. by wash sales
between the confcderatcs. So that the
whole transaction is Objectionable; and,
in failing to set this forth. and to al
lege the conspiracy in the third count
which the solicitor admitted to be
thus defective. the Government case is
by that much discredited. And when
the solicitor admits further that "the
author of the count seems to have had
in mind the object Of drawing it so
that it would allege minimum TO con-
SIilutc dn oHchst dHdluSI lHe 'pnSl hldu
law. he appeared TO give away this
point in the case And he was
Obliged to add. Whether he went too
low in striving for minimum is the
question we are here to determine
That is clearly the case so far as the
pleadings before the court went; but it
by no means strengthens the count. On
the contrary. it immediately raises the
question why the count was minmized,
and why il was that the full case
was not presented in its strength so
that the point raised BY the Chief JUS
tice should receive its full weight The
rules of the cotton exchange. in so far
as this point i concerned, seem to be
expressly adapted for the use Of con
sprators who wish 10 corner the mar |
ket. for as the Chief Justice SAYS. the !
essence Of genuine sale is the pay !
ment for and delivery of the goods This |
failing. the rules clearly tend 10 aid |
speculation. to corners. and 10 tricks |
unknown 70 genuine business. With /
suits brought like this. II is no wonder /
that tricksters arc able. far too often, to |
avoid the penalties Of the law. and 10 |
escape the proper punishment for their !
oifenses.
Rochester (N. " Democrat and !
Chronicle: "A death list of 1896