The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1911-12-06

dependent companies have 81 SO per
cent. while the American Tobacco COM
pany will have 33.OS per cent. the Lig-
gett & Meyers zoos per cent. the Loril-
lard company 22.82 per cent aud the
Reynolds company 2.66 per cent The
stock Of the other thirteen companies.
both preferred and common. has bee
taken from the defendant American
Tobacco company and has been dis.
tributed among its stockholders. All
covenants restricting competition have
been declared null and further per-
Torrance Of them has been enjoined.
The preferred stock of the different
companies has now been given voting
power which was denied it under the
old organization. The ratio of the pre-
ferred stock to the common was as Is
to 40. This constitutes a very decided
change in the character of the owner
ship and control of each company.
In the original suit there were TWEEN.
LYNNE defendants. who were charged
with being the conspirators through
whom the illegal combination acquired
and exercised its unla wful dominion.
Under the decree these defendants will
hold amounts Of stock in the various
distributee companies ranging from ii
per cent as a maximum to 28h per
cent as a minimum. except in the case
Of n small company. the Porto Rican
Tobacco company, in which they will
hold As per cent. The Twenty-Five in
dividual defendants are enjoined for
three years from buying any stock tx
cept from each other. and the group is
thus prevented from extending its IN
troll during that period. All parties to
the suit and the new companies who
are made parties are enjoined perpet-
ually from in any way effecting any
combination between any Of the COM
panies in violation of the statute by
way Of resumption Of the old trust.
Each Of the fourteen companies Is en-.
joined from acquiring stock in any of
the others. All these companies are
enjoined from having common direc-
tors or officers. or common buying or
selling agents. or common Offices. or
lending money to each other.
Size Of New Companies.
Objection was made by certain in
dependent tobacco companies that this
settlement was unjust because it left
companies with very large capital in
active business and that the settle
ment that would be effective to put all
on an equality would be a division Of
the capital and plant Of the trust into
small fractions in amount more near
~ equal to that Of each Of the indie
pendent companies. This contention
results from a misunderstanding Of
the antitrust law and its purpose. It
Is not intended thereby to prevent the
accumulation Of large capital in bust
ness enterprises in which such q CON-
bination can secure reduced cost of
production. sale and distribution. 1t
is directed against such an aggrega-
ton Of capital only when its purpose
is that of sitting competition, enhanc'
ing or controlling prices and establish
ing a monopoly. If we shall have by
the decree defeated these purposes
and restored competition between the
large units into which the capital and
plant have been divided we shall have
accomplished the useful purpose OF
the statute.
confiscation Not tho Purpose Of tn,
Statute.
1t is not the purpose of the statut,
to confscate the property and capita
Of the offending trusts. Methods O
punishment by fine or Imprisonment
Of the individual offenders, by fine o
the corporation or by forfeiture of 1t
goods in transportation are provided
but the proceeding in equity is a spe
cific remedy to stop the operation o
the trust by injunction and proven
the future use Of the plant and capita
in violation of the statute.
Effectiveness Of Decree.
l venture to say that not in the hi.
tory of American law has a deere
more effective for such a purpose bee
entered by a court than that agains
the tobacco trust. AS Circuit Jude
Noyes said in his judgment approvin
the decree:
"The extent to which it has bee
necessary to tear apart this combin'
ton and force it into new forms wit
the attendant burdens ought to demon
strate that the federal antitrust statu1
is a drastic statute which accomplish,
effective results. which so long as
: stands on the statute books must
obeyed and which cannot be disobe
ed without mourning %farreaching pc
alties. And, on the other hand. Il
= successful reconstruction of this {
g%anization should teach that the effe
Of enforcing this statute Is not to d
stroy, but to reconstruct; not to q
y molish, but to r%ecreate in accordan
with the conditions which the congre
v has declared shall exist among t
J. people Of the United States"
: Common Stock Ownership.