The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-05-20
Suit To Break
 Lumber Trust
Wickersham Gets After Eastern Association Under Oil Trust
 Decision--E|aborate System
 of BIackIisting Charged-- Test Case to Determine
 How Far Combinations of Retailers May go

heldlIcIS mdy gu
 The Federal Government, in a suit filed yesterday afternoon in the Cir | cult Court by United States Attorney Henry A. Wise, attacked the com bination known as the Lumber Trust" as conspiracy in "unreason- able" restraint of trade, and asked for an injunction barring the com btne from continuing to carry on the lumber trade by it's present methods. The suit was prepared by Clark Mo- Kercher, special assistant to Attorney General Wfckersham. Profiting by the decision of the United States Su- preme Court in the Standard Oil case, the GOvernme ent took special pains to designate the restraint of trade in the lumber business as "unreasonable.' ' Specifically the petition charges an illegal conspiracy of interstate trade in lumber and lumber products vio- lating the Sherman Antitrust law It is said that the suit may be the first of a series planned by Attorney General Wickersham looking to breaking up alleged agreements among retailers of many of the com l modities of life to maintain high prices; to force all commodities oi life to maintain high prices; to forcG all ultimate consumers to buy from retailers and to black list wholesalers who sell to others than members of | the retail organizations in the various states and cities.
 Ten trade organizations and more than 150 individuals are made de- fendants by the suit brought to-day. It alleges violations of the Sherman antitrust law and asks the court to grant permanent injunction re- straining the defendants from con tinuing the conspiracy charged. An elaborate system of blacklisting adopted by the alleged conspirators; copies of circulars sent out by the various organizations, the classifying the consumers as proper and i'm proper; extracts from reports threat ening short shrift" to dealers who violate the rules of the organizations and branding such offenders as "poachers," "scalpers,'' mavericks" and ''illegitimates" are set forth in the governments petition.
 Many Under Ban.
 It is alleged that not only have private consumers been bIacklisted but that many of the great industrial concerns of the country have been put under the ban by the lumber dealers
 The governments bill which aggre- gates probably 10000 words, is replete with sensational allegations and in- teresting exhibits.
 The suit instituted to-day is direct ed specifically against the retail or ganizations in the eastern states but the trial unquestionably will embrace the methods adopted by retailers and wholesalers throughout the United States.
 The case is regarded as Attorney General Wickersham's long planned test suit to have the courts determine how far combinations of retailers may go to prevent the ultimate con- sumner from dealing directly with the wholesaler or producer.
 Not After MiddIeman.
 The government takes the position | that any agreement for acts which prevent a consumer from buying from where he chooses or his best advant- age are unreasonable" restraint of trade and a violation of the Sherman law. The suit is not intended as an attack on the middleman as such be- cause the department of justice takes the position that there is legitimate business opportunity for him. It is known that while the department has been making a nation wide investiga- tiOn of the question as it relates to lumber, its agents have reported to Attorney General Wickersham that
 
 marketing of many other commodi- ties in daily use by the American fam fly. If the courts sustained the gov ernment's contentious in this case there is promise of a sweeping attack all along the line upon similar al- legged conSpiracies. Officials of the department of justice regard the case as the most important in principle of all the antitrust suits the govern meOt had undertaken
 The Defendants.
 Attorney General Wickersham has personally directed the gathering of the evidence which has occupied more than year. His special assistant, Clark McKercher, who has been in active charge of the preparation of the case filed the bill to-day which was signed by Henry A. Wise, United States district attorney at New York; James A. Fowler, assistant to the at torney general, and Felix Frankfurt CT, assistant United States attorney
 The principal defendants in the suit are: Eastern States Retail Lumb Der Dealers association, a New York cor poration, the Central body of the nine other defendant organizations. Rich ard S. White, of New York; William c. McBride of Philadelphia; and Louis A. Mansfield of New Haven, it's off, cers; William B. Gaines of Greenfield, Mass; B. L. Perkins of Providence, R. l.; William T. Galliher of Wash ington, D. C., Charles H. Tibbetts of White Plains, N. Y., it's directors and 25 other individual members.
 The New York Lumber Trade as- sociation, and 32 trustees
 The Building Material Mems asso- citation of Westchester county, its off, cers and six directors.
 2 The Lumber Dealers Association of Connecticut, A. Schumaker, Water bury, Conn.,; F. A. Lines, Ansonia, Conn.,; Louis A. Mansfield of New Haven, Conn.,, its officers and 12 di- rectOrS.
 The Massachusetts Retail Lumber Dealers association, it's officers and eight directors.
 The Lumber Dealers association of Rhode Island and itS officers and