New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-07-07
AFTER THE COAL ROADS
Government ReneWs Its Fight to
Separate Rai|roading andMining
SUIT AGAINST THE LEHIGH
Action to Vitalize Commodities
Clause of Interstate Law
Filed Yesterday.

Washington, July s.--The government will
renew the fight TO 6issociate the great coal
carrying railroads from their virtual con-
troll OF mines. and thus vitaize the COM
nloditles clause OF the interstate commerce
law.
That the Lehigh Valley Coal Company.
Coke Brothers. Incorporated: the New
York e. Middle1eld Railroad and Coal Com
pany and the Locust Mountain Coal and
Iron Company are not bona fide coal COM
panies, but merely adjuncts TO the Lehigh
Valley Railroad and are devices for evad-
ing the commodities clause" is the govern
ments principal complaint
II IL also alleged that thu Lehigh Valley
Railroad. with the object OF removing COM
petition, has caused the Lehigh Valley
Coal Company to contract at loss for the
output Of other anthracite operators; has
transported the coal over its own lines
and through the coal company fixed the
price In New York and other markets.
The government charges that although
the buying of coal from other operators
has been done at loss TO the coal COM
pany, It has enabled the behigh valley
Railroad to transport the coal over It's
lines with profit from the freight charges.
To support its claim that the coal COM
pany is merely the dummy" through
which the railroad engaged in mining,
transporting and selling coal in violation
of the commodities clause. the government
cites that the officers of the railroad and
the coal company are the same, and that
certain members Of the directorate and the
executive committee Of the railroad are
members OF the directorate and executive
committee Of the coal company.
Among those so named are Eben b.
Thomas. George +. Baker, e. T. Stotes-
bury and James A. Middleton.
Each Of them, It is charged, has been
named to his position in the coal company
because Of his position with the railroad.
thereby enabling al OF them to act on be-
half. in the interest and at the direction
Of the railroad company. 1t is set forth
that the coal company uses the railroad
companys Offices and does It's business
over the railroad companys desks.
AS a further allegation that the Lehigh
Valley Coal Company is an adjunct Of the
I.ehigh Valley Railroad the government :
complaint says that since the capital stock
VI Tic Cpdl 'pinpdliF h"o "'~'' N'''''' -
the railroad It has paid no dividends. that
millions OF dollars have been advanced by
the railroad to the coal company which
have never been refunded, and that the
railroad has paid the interest upon the
coal compsnys bonds being compensated,
the government claims, by the earnings
from transportation Of coal over IFS lines.
BY proving that the Lehigh Valley Rail-
road is actually the regal owner or the
Lehigh Valley Coal Company's anthracite.
or has a pecunary interest in II. the gov
eminent hopes 10 bring its case into line
with the recent decision Of the Supreme
Court in the commodities clause case,
strike down dummy coal companies and
force the Goa carrying railroads from their
control Of mines.
While, in effect. the governments action
IS blow at the so-called coal trust, the
case is separate from that suit, which is
now on appeal TO the Supreme Court
In the governments original commodities
clause action against the anthracite roads
which was begun in 1906 the courts held that
A railroad company might own stock In a
coal company and not violate the commodi-
ties clause II II did not own or have any
interest In the transported coal of that
company
With that decision th- commodities clause