Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-05-16

j + & 4 7 6 y 4
Washington, D. c., May 15.--At Il
o'clock Chief Justice White began to
deliver the opinion Of the supreme
court in the suit over the dissolution
of the Standard Oil organisation.
1t was Chief Justice White who
lent his voice to the refusal Of the
court to dissolve the 80 called sugar
trust when the famous knight case
was called before the court. He also
delivered a dissenting opinion against
the Northern Securities company whom
1T was dissolved by the court as being
! In violation OF the Sherman anti trust
law. On the Knight case, the stand.
ard OIL depended largely for support
as In the majority opinion In the North,
Tern Securities case the government
had founded much OF its hope. Il was
evident that Attorney Wickershan
who had directed the governments
battle during it's later stages was not
delighted when the chief justice began
but ne maintained some hope OF sue
cess.
Chief Justice White first went into
an extensive recital of the facts in the
case and then held that the court had
jurisdiction over the suit, which had
been questioned by the Standard OIL
company.
/ Chief Justice White said from the
bench that the contentious were as d.
vergent as the ends OF the earth. He
spoke OF Jungle" of testimony and
Of law. The only point in which the
two sides were in accord was that the
! first and second sentence Of the Sher-
, man antitrust law controlled the case.
| The chief justice said the court seized
| upon this point as basis upon which
| to work out q decision.
| Taking up the two sectionsWhite
began consideration of the law, prom
| Using to come later to it's application to
the,present case. He first took up the
common law which dealt with the
problems raised by the Sherman anti
/, trust law.
History Of Case.
The suit which called forth today's de-
cision was instituted In 1906 In the
United States circuit court for the
eastern district Of Missouri. It was
brought in the name Of the United
States. The immediate object was to
dissolve the Standard OIL company OF
New Jersey.
| From the very beginning. the busi-
ness and the legal world recognized
that the suit put the Sherman anti
trust law to the most severe test to
which 1t had been subjected. The law
had been on the statute book since
1890 and had been the basis OF some
eighteen salts finally passed upon by
the supreme court OF the United States
That the law was constitutional was
accepted as settled by these decisions,
but simple as the words of the statute
! seemed, there was an absence OF unan-
unity In regard to its interpretation.
With that situation confronting the
government and the defendants, the
| suit was begun with the general be-
lief that the attire business world
would feel the effect of the outcome
Of the gigantic struggle.
Tho Governments Claims.
| The government claimed that two
sections OF the Sherman anti-trust law
had been violated. The hrst section
reads as follows:
Every contract, combination in the
from of trust or otherwise. or con-
! spiracy, in restraint of trade or COM
| merce among the several states, or
with foreign nations, is hereby ue.
clared to be illegal
! The second section reads:
Every persons (Which subsequent.
" was explained In the statute to in.
clude corporations) who shall
monopolize or attempt to monopolfze
| or combine or conspire with any other
person or persons, to monopolize. any
part of trade or commerce among the
several states, or with foreign nations.
shall be deemed guilty OF . misde-
meanor."
| The Standard Oil company OF New
Jersey, some seventy subsidiary cor
porations, John d. Rockefeller, Will
liam Rockefeller, Henry M. Flagler.