The Thibodaux sentinel. (Thibodaux, La.) 1905-1912, 1911-12-09
TRUST PROBLEM
IS 1AFTs TOPIC
Message to Congress Devoted
to This One Matter.
DECISIONS ARE DEFENDED
rsssclution Plans Of Standard OH and
Tobacco Expiained-FederaI In
corpcratIon and Commission
Recommended.

sz s$as n OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
ashington.-President Taft's annual
message, which was read In both houses
81 congress Tuesday. deals exclusively
With the ANTITRUST statute. The message
An part Is as follows:
70 the Senate and House of Represent
atiyes: This message is the first of sew
eral which I shall send to congress during
the interval between the opening Of it's
regular session and its adjournment for
the Christmas holidays. The amount of
information to be communicated as to
the operations of the government, the
nurnber Of important subjects calling for
comment by the executive. and the trans
mission to congress OF exhaustive re-
ports by special commissions make 1t i'm
possible to include In one message of
reasonable length discussion of the top
les that ought to be brought to the at
tention Of the national legislature at it's
frst regular session.
Decisions of Supreme Court.
In May last the Supreme court handed
down decisions in the suits in equity
brought by the United States to enjoin
the further maintenance of the Standard
OIL trust and of the American Tobacco
trust, and to secure their dissolution. The
:
advise the business world authoritatively
of the scope and operation of the anti
trust law of 1890. The decisions do not
depart In any substantial way from the
previous decisions of the court in constru-
ing and applying this important statute.
but they clarity those important decisions
by further defining the already admitted
exceptions to the literal construction of
the act. BY the DEGREES, they furnish
III fn ha
Of dealing with the capital and property
Of Illegal trusts. These decisions sug
gest the need and wisdom Of additional
or supplemental legislation to make 1t
easier for the entire business community
to square with the rule, Of action and
legality thus finally established and to
preserve the benefit. freedom and spur
Of reasonable competition without loss OF
real efficiency or progress.
II has been said that the court, by In
Producing into the construction Of the
statute common law distinctions. has
enasculated 1t. This Is obviously untrue.
BY its Judgment every contract and COM
blnation in restraint of interstate trade
made WITH the p,lrpose.a or necessary ef-
feet OF controlling prices by sitting COM
petition, or of establishing in whole or In
part a monopoly OF such trade. Is con-
den1ned by the statute. The most ex-
freme critics cannot instance case that
ought to be condemned under the statute
which is not brought within its terms as
thus construed.
The suggestion is also made that the Su-.
preme court by its decisions In the last
two cases has committed to the court the
underlined and unlimited discretion to de-
termine whether a case OF restraint OF
trade Is within the terms of the statute
This is wholly untrue. A reasonable re-
straint of trade at common law Is well
understood and is clearly defined. 1t does
not rest in the discretion Of the court. 1t
must be limited to accomplish the purpose
of a lawful main contract to which. IN
order that 1t shall be enforceable at ALL
Il must be Incidental. III 1t exceeds the
needs of that contract 1T Is void.
Methods Of Dissolution.
In the Standard Oil case the Supreme
and circuit courts found the combination
TO be a monopoly OF the interstate busi-
ness of refining, transporting. and mar
keting petroleum and its products. effect
ed and maintained through thirty-seven
corporations. the stock OF which
was held by a New Jersey company. 1t
In effect commanded the dissolution OF
this combination, directed the transfer
and pro-rata distribution by the New Jer-
sey company OF the stock held by 1t in
the thirty corporations to and
among Its stockholders. and the corpora
Joined from conspiring or combining to
restore such monopoly: and all agree
ments between the subsidiary corporations
tending to produce or bring about further
violations OF the act were enjoined.
In the Tobacco case. the court found
that the Individual defendants, twenty
nine in number. had been engaged in a
effort to acquire complete do
ninion over the manufacture. sale. and
distribution of tobacco in this country
and abroad. and that this had been done
by combinations made with purpose
aud effect to stifie competition. control
prices. and establish monopoly. not
only in the manufacture of tobacco, but !
also of tin-foil and hcorice. used in it's
and of its products Of CT
gars, cigarettes and snuffs. The tobacco
suit presentend far more complicated
and difficult case than the Standard Oil
suit for decree which would effectuate
he will of the court and end the VIOLA
ion of the statute. There was here no |
Jingle holding company as In the case |
,f the Standard Oil trust The main COM |
,any was the American Tobacco COM
,any, a manufacturing, selling and hold
ng company. The plan adopted to de- I
troy the combination and restore compe-
ition involved the redivfson of the capi-
al and plants Of the whole trust between |
ome Of the companies constituting the
Z uSt anu new companies oISdhZcu AOI |
he purposes Of the decree and made par.
les to 1t. and numbering. new and old.
ourteen.
Purpose Not Confiscation.
1t is not the purpose Of the statute to |
the property and capital of the
ffending trusts. Methods of punishment
y fine or Imprisonment of the individual
fenders. by fine Of the corporation. or
y forfeiture Of its goods in transporta-
ion are provided. but the proceeding in
guilty is a specific remedy to stop the
peration Of the trust by injunction and
revent the future use OF the plant and |
apital In violation of the statute
l venture to say that not in the history