The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-07-18

The case Of the Ware-Kramer To-
bacco Company against the Iopdcco
Trust not as to the amount of dam
apes hut because it was the first
tine the trust has been made TO face
a jury in North Carolina and meet
the evidence tina it was using It's
power to illegally and crimlnally
crush competition. The trial con
sumed more than four weeks and at
it's conclusion the evidence was SO
overwhelming that the jury said the
American Tobacco Company IS a
criminal by answering yes to these
two issues submitted by the judge:
"(D Have the defendants, or eth
er Of them, and, if yes, which de
PENDANTS, injured the> pldlntlff cor
poration in it's business or property
by making any contract or engaging
in any combination in the form OF
a trust, or otherwise, or conspiracy
In restraint of trade or ommerc
among the several States or with for
elgn nations!
"(2) Have the defendants, or eth
er Of them, and, if yes, then which
defendants injured the plaintiff cor
poration in its business or property
bv m~OnopoliZing or attempting TO
monopolize, or combining, or consp1r-
ing with any other person or persons
to monopolize any part of the trade
or m among the several
States or with foreign nations"
The American Tobacco Company
and it's secret baby, the Wells-White-
head Company, must pay 100000,
the expenses of the case, ana
$4,000 to the lawyers who
represented the Ware-kramer Com
pany. AS to the damages, Whlle
most people think the amount should
have been nearer $500, 600 than
5000 600, the public is not interested
except in SO far as the amages may
deter the trust from using the same
illegal and unfair methods to hound
down any other competitors and thus
continue for themselves a monopoly
of the business. In q case like this,
the public has the interest that, if
the criminal law is not invoke the
trust may be deferred from future
crimes Of killing competitors for fear
that they may be mulcted in such
heavy damages as to make destruc-
ton Of competitors too expensive a
crime for them to continue to in
dulge in. History of the past TWEEN
ty-ive years has shown that there
is nothing from espionage and the
bludgeon hat the trust will not re-
sort 10 in its determination to monop-
OliZo tho tobacco business. North
Carolina has suffered Outrageous1y at
it's hands, for tobacco rme have
been often paid only starvation prices
for their crop and competitors nave
been ruthlessy destroyed If they re-
fused to sell out at the terms offered
by the trust. Some years ago a pros
porous small tobacco manufactures in
North Carolina was asked why he did
not enlarge his business. His an
swer was: Il am making a very
comfortable living in my small bust
ness. l do not sell enough to trouble
the trust. I could get the capital
and do a much larger business, but
would crush me l prefer to go along
and do as much as they Will permit
me than to be driven out of bust
ness" Later on, when a younger
| partner was admitted, the business
was enlarged and travelling men We're
put on the road. The trust saw the
growth, determined to end h compe-
tition, and sent word to the gentle
man quoted above that they would
give a certain sum for the
business. 1t was a reasonable
sum and carried With it good
employment for several mem
bers of the firm. They did not wish
to sell. but they understood that be
hind the courteous offer to buy was
a concealed weapon of destruction
S1ach as has hean shown WAS emnlaX-