Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-19
Government Should Sanction
Corporation Agreements.
GOVERN PRICE AND OUTPUT
Views Expressed by Samuel Inter
myer Before Senate Committee.
SHERMAN LAW Is ALL RIGHT
Supplemented by Legislation, He
Says, Statute Would "Stand
for All Time"

Samuel Untermeyer, the New York
corporation lawyer. concluded his testi-
mony before the Senate committee on
interstate commerce yesterday afternoon
with a reiteration OF his belief that the
method Of dissolving the tobacco trust
was 1.-The most colossal judicial farce
ever enacted" and a reaffirmation Of his
faith in the efficiency of the Sherman
antitrust law. He was confident. he
said. that the Sherman law, when sup
plemented by legislation in One or two
respects might stand for all time"
You propose an extremely radical
change in the law. do you not?" Senator
Cumtnins of Iowa inquired.
Only to this extent" Mr.. Untermeyer
replied. THE present law rests on the
basis of unrestricted competition in bust
ness in this country. But the day of
| such competition is past, and 1t would be
we'll to amend the law so as to permit,
under government supervision and con.
troll, the making of agreements to regu-
late price and output between corpora
tons which are face to face with ruin as
result Of competition.
Smaller Profits the Result.
Mr.. Untermeyer contested the sugges-
ton of Senator Townsend of Michigan
that this would tend to increase the cost
of living. insisting that so much more
stability in business would result that the
business man would be content with
smaller profits and the ultimate con-
| sumner would profit greatly thereby.
He told the committee that the United
States Steel Corporation was the most
menacing of all the trusts and that this
| was due mot to it's size nor to the
| amount Of its capital stock, although that
is great, but to the concentration of the
money power behind it. This great power
| makes every competitor in effect a pup
pet. The powerful hands that protect the
steel business have control of the great
est banks, trust companies and railroads.
and it is impossible for competition to
exist against 1t"
Senator oliver wanted to know who
controlled the United States Steel Cor
poration, but Mr.. Untermeyer politely but
firmly declined to mention names. He
again stated his opinion that the mere
limiting of the capital stock of corpora
lions would not curb trusts. The Sher-
man law, he said, must be enforced up
to point where a given industry faced
ruin from competition, and then the gov
eminent must step in and sanction trade
agreements such as he had previously re-
ferred to- which would permit the in
dustry to make a reasonable profit. A
commission should be established to regu-
late such agreements, he said, and also
to supervise the chartering or licensing
| Of interstate corporations.
Government Should Appeal.
| In reply to a question from Senator
Cummins, Mr.. Untermeyer said there
was no way in which the court approval
Of the tobacco dissolution plan could
be appealed except by the government.
But you say. I suppose" said Senator
Cummins. that President Taft and At
torney General Wickersham have no in
tention of taking an appeal"
The voice of the people," Mr.. Inter
meyer replied, may be SO loud and so
insistent as to force them to change
their minds