Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-12-15
ANTITRUST LAW ENFORCED
Attorney General Reviews Years
Work of Department of Justice.
FOUR MILLIONS COLLECTED
He Suggests that Bureau of Cor
pOratiOns lie Made Executive
Bureau to Supervise
Licenses.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1i.-Pursuing
President Taft's recommendation that an
executive bureau bo created to supervise
corporations charters under a federal in
corporation act Attorney General Wick
ersham, in his annual report submitted
to congress today, suggests that the Blu
reau Of Corporations be raised to that
dignity, even in the absence OF the pro-
posed federal Incorporation statute.
This branch Of the Department Of Com
merce and Labor the attorney general
urges, should be brought into closer re-
lation with this department and adds that
1t might well be "availed Of as the nu-
cleus for an administrative board under
whose supervision consultations or mer-
gers for lawful purposes might be
formed"
In enforcing the Sherman anti trust law
the attorney general points out that the
Department Of Justice and the courts are
confronted by economic, rather than le-
gal problems, when It comes to working
out methods or dlsntegration after a
corporation has been declared an illegal
combination The department enlisted
the assistance of the bureau of corpor-
ations In the dissolution OF the tobacco
trust, and II would be of great value to
,he legal branch of the government, Mr.
Wickersham says, II the functions OF the
bureau should be so enlarged that Il
could be called upon officially to make
Investigations and report its conclusions
with respect TO plans for the voluntary
or enforced disintegration OF monopolis-
tic combinations.
The attorney general reviews the rec
ord of a year Of intense activity I'm fed
eral prosecutions, and points out that the
Department of Justice financially sus-
tanned itself as the result of the contri-
button of A,204, lib to the United states
treasury IN the shape of fines collected,
customs duties recoYeries, etc The eX-
pense Of the department, including the
office of the attorney general all OF the
district attorneys and assistants through
out the country, aggregated Ss223,773.
Antitrust Prosecutions.
In a comprehensive review of the anti
trust prosecutions, the attorney general
shows that the seventeen antitrust civil
suits pending at the beginning of the last
fiscal year were augmented by six addi-
tional actions, while the eleven criminal
prosecutions under the same statute were
Increased by twenty three more prosecu-
tions during tho last fiscal year
Eight civil suits and a similar number
of criminal trials were brought 10 con-
clusion during the year. In four OF the
civil prosecutions judgments were rem
dered in favor OF the United States, while
three were lost and one was discontinued.
-Four convictions were secured under the
criminal clause OF the statute during the
year and four cases were either quashed
or discontinued.
Declaring that he appreciates that pub
lie interest In the Sherman antitrust law
was even greater than II was al the
date OF his last report, the attorney gen
eral sets forth the following cases as
being prosecuted or pending for final
settlement:
The powder trust. the night rider
cases. United States Steel corporation,
cotton corner, alleged towing monopoly,
beef packers, Southern Pacific merger, BIZ
luminous coal combination, naval stores
suit; bathtub trust, lumber trust, milk
trust, wallpaper combination, sugar trust,
Transatlantic steamship pool, magazine
trust, shoe machinery trust combination