The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-24
LUMBER MEN ARE TRUST OF POWER" Charged With Violation of Antitrust Law
  FOURTEEN INDICTED
Have No Capital Stock, Hold No h. corporation and Do Not Try to Control Prices, But They
 Published Blacklist

Chicago, June 23.-Fourteen secretaries of as many retail lumber dealers asso- citations, indicted by special federal grand jury here today for alleged Vlola- ton of the Sherman antitrust law, con- | stituted a new kind of trust" according to the United States attorneys who con- | ducted the investigation. The retail lum- Der dealers, it was admitted at the close 1 of the investigation, held no incorpo- ration, no capital stock and did not try | to control prices and prevent compeu- ton among themselves. Instead they had what the attorneys say was trust of power and sought to provide that all lumber should be sold to consumers | only through retail dealers and not by wholesalers or manufacturers. | The men as secretaries of the retail associations constitute the Lumber Sec retaries' Bureau of Information, ineor- porated in Illinois in 1905, and repre- sent thousands of retailers. They are: | Arthur l.. Holmes, Detroit, secretary Michigan Lumber Dealers association and editor of trade paper The Scout. George F. sweet, SSiIcidis ol ''S Michigan association. Willard G. Hollis, Minneapolis, secre- tary of the Northwestern Lumbermen's association.
 Harry A. Gorsuch, Kansas City, secre- tary of the Southwestern Lumber as- sociation
 Bert Critchheld, Lincoln, Neb., secre-
 
 association.
 E. E. Hall, also secretary Nebraska Lumber Dealers associat on.
 Harry S. Scarce, Mooresville, Ind, sec retary of the Indiana Lumber Dealers association
 H. H. Hemenway, Denver, Col, sec retarv of the Colorado and Wyoming as- sociation.
 Louis l. Helman, also secretary or the Colorado and Wyoming association. IT. S. Adams, Chilncothe, Ohio, sec retary of the Union association of Lum- Der Dealers and of the Ohio Associa- tion of Retail Lumber Dealers. B. N. Hayward, Columbus, Ohio, also secretary of the Ohio association. "A. l. tary of the Western Retail Lumbermen's association.
 Tennessee Man Involved R. P. Bransford, Union City, Tenn, secretary of the Retail Lumber Dealers association
 A. c. Rightor, secretary Pittsburg, Pa, Lumber Dealers association of Penn sylvana.
 The power of the retailers organiza- tions was weded through the bureau of information according to the indictments and by scheme resembling an alleged blacklist published in the Scout. trade paper edited by Arthur l.. Holmes. The Scout was named in the list of overt acts as the means by which the sec retaries published the names of manu- lecturers and wholesalers who sold to consumers.
 The names of more than 100 concerns, including the big mail order houses and wholesale dealers from Pennsylvania to the Pacfc coast were shown, by docu- mentary evidence given the grand iury to have appeared in the publication as having violated the prescriptions of the retailers. who it is said retaliated by refusing to purchase goods from those
 
 The members of the board of informa- ton also were charged with having maintained a system of espionage over the business affairs of the wholesalers and manufacturers and having published bulletins showing 'unethcal" conduct on the part of wholesalers and manufac- turers in selling goods direct to con sumers.
 Three secretaries in the organization re- ceived immunity from testifying before the grand jury
 Each indictment is in two counts. The first charges conspiracy among the retail lumber dealers to interfere with and re- strain the trade between the manufaq- turers and wholesalers and the consuni- CTS, The second count charges a conspir- acy to suppress and eliminate the compe- tition that should exist between the wholesalers and the retailers and the con sumers. The members who received i'm munity for testifying were Paul Lach- mund. Milwaukee: George w. HotchlSiss Chicago, secretary Illinois Lumber and Builders Supply Dealers association and secretary Of the Secretaries bureau; .~~~~~~~~~~~~
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