The Hawaiian gazette., 1911-01-13
Business and Finance

the Standard oil case as probably the
most important that ever came before
the court
The STANDARD Oil suit was instituted
in 1906 in the circuit court Of the
United States for the eastern division
of the eastern judicial district of Mis-.
souri. The federal government was the
complaining party. II claimed that the
Standard Oil Company Of New Jersey,
as n holding company, acquired since
1899 and held by direct stock owner
ship, sixty.five companies These sixty.
FIVE il was alleged, owned the stock Of
forty. nine other companies, making q
total of ia companies. The govern
ment asked that this organization be
dissolved under the Sherman antitrust
law.
A year was taken by the four
Judges in the circuit court to pass on
the case. BY unanimous agreement, a
decree was entered by the coIrt dis
solving the organization, both because
it was in "restraint of interstate com
merce" and because it was "attempt.
ing to monopolize.' - Before the decree
became effective an appeal carried the
case to the Supreme Court.
After Tobacco Trust.
The Tobacco case was instituted in
1907. in the circuit court of the United
States for the southern district of New
York. The government here, too, was
the complaining party. Allies in the
various branches Of the tobacco bust
ness, with combined assets of more than
S4O0,000,0O0, constituted the organiza-
4 I,a1, n
have the court dissolve.
The four judges each rendered sepa-
rate opinions in the Tobacco case, but
three of them united in a decree, hold
ing many of the corporations had en-
tered into combination "in restraint
of trade" in violation of the first sec.
tion of the Sherman antitrust act.
These three decreed the dissolution of
this combination. Other corporations,
including the United Cigar Stores Com
pany, the Imperial Tobacco Company
and the British American Tobacco Com.
pany, were found not to be in the COM
h1nation None was held to be emo
ropolizing'' in violation of the second
section of the Sherman antitrust law.
The application Of the Sherman anti
trust law to these two organizations
involves UOJ Oily an luNbsIlBHulOu lnJU
tie facts, but includes an interpreta.
tion of the law itself. The principal
uncertainties in regard to the law clus
ter around three words in the statute
These words form the basis of three
questions: What is commerce.
What is restraint" of trade or com
merce7 and What is it to "monopo
lize"7
Different Arguments.
The corporation tax cases, eighteen
in all, involve entirely different argu
ments. The corporation tax provisions
of the Payne.Aldrich tariff act provide
for ga special excise tax with respec
to the carrying on or doing business
! by corporations, equivalent to one pc
centum upon the entire net income owe
opd above $4,000"
Each of the cases was originated il
various circuit courts by persons fnan
cially interested in the tax not being
/ paid. These persons asked the court
TO enjoin the payment of the tax b,
respective corporations because the taI
/. was unconstitutional. The validity O.
! the tax was upheld in each case.
i The law is opposed principally on tn
i, grounds that it attacks the sOvereignt,
Of the States by taxing State fran