The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1911-05-16
tom o1 OH
s q

ifnoff by the 81 prime E5SaFt oa the
IgnitetI states. I.ilft the IN sfas. con-
tsfitutionaf was aeeeDted A. ettleil ~
these declslon but siplc az tbs
Words or the statute eincts stl1erl
was an absence oe unanfmltyE, IN re-
lard to ita fnferpretattoh- with thai
situation confrontins the GovernEpeni
land the defendaflfs, the suit was be-
gun with the general belief that the
entire business world would feel the
lenetst OF tie outcome q the gIgHntIe
struggle.
Tde government elaimed mat two
sections of the Sherman antf-tr1lst
) law had been violated The hret
section reads as follows
Every contract, coFn5lnaeion in
I the form Of trust or otherVsise OF
| conspiracy, In restraint o. trade OF
commerce among the several states.
/ or vis7..tH Foreign nations, Hereby de-
ciared to be illegal"
The second section reads:
every person (which subsequent
I " was explained IN the statute to I'm
cinde corpofations) who shan mor1oE-
oHze, or httempt TO ,I5fonopoltze OF
combine II cGnspire with any other
person or persons. to nionopoIize, ans
part OF trade or commerce among tht
several states, or with foreign ma.
lions. snail be deemed guilty OF {
nisdemeanor."
The standard OIL. COMPANY CT NeH
Jersey some seventy Subsidiary cor
nora lions. John d. Rockefeller, VII
liam rockefeller, Henry u. FiaEIer
Henry n. Rogers, John D. Archboid
oH-eT n. Payne and Charles "a
pratt, all defendants IN the suit de
MED the charges.
Months were spent in gathering ev-
idence. The general lire oftattaclk a
shown BY evidence presented by tn
government was tl1is:s elaiTred tina
about 1s06 the RoeiEeteAers ailt
FIaeier conceived the idea OF con
trolling the petroleum trade of the
country, and a little later entered int
a conspiracy with Rogers, Archbold-
payne ana PRATT to gain a control OF
the oil business. TO carry out this
alleged conspiracy. It was claimed.
they frzt pooled, tpeIr interests
then put them into the. hands OF
trustees or s.trGsts.' and hnaIly wher
the trust of. 1889 was declared VOID
| in a decision BY the ONO, supreme
court in a proceeding against tas
standard Oil Company of Ohio. reor-
ga nized that STANDARD OIL contpa ny q
New Jersey to FAKE over their inter
ests and to secure monopoly Evt
dence of rebatfng. OF pr.ce euttins
and of organization OF secret con
Germs to pose as Independents wa.
excited to show that the standart
was seeking by unfair means to re
strain trade and TO procure mo
nopoIy.
Standard Or introduced evidence
to show that there had never beel
such a conspiracy. It sought 70 PROVE
that the Ohio supreme court did nc
hold the trust agreement of 1882 Vole-
but merely required the Standard OF
Company of Ohio to- withdraw frol-
the trust"
evidence was = prodlred - tc SHOW
that Rotating had been the ,opder 9;
/ the day among ait aolltrneErial con
Germs, thar price cutting sti1d isecre'
concerns not the rule and weE'
used as fInate.s instrurnetlts O.
competition.
The circuit court held that the re-
organization of the Standard Oh
Company Of New jersey in 1888 wa
not only a violation Of the hrst sec
ton of the act, which referred TO re-
stralnts of trade. but also of the sec
ond section, which applied to mouop
IorizinR. The standard Oh had ar
Igued that there could be no addi-
tIonal restraint as q result OF the re-
organization becausc the standaru
OH Company OF New Jersey was
owned by a common body OF owners
in exactly the came proportion that
all the subsidiary companies ta'ken
over by this new organization had
been held by these same common
owners for years past. The court heidi
otherwise and said that the combine
ton In a single corporation or per-
son by an esrchahBe of stock Of the
power OF many stockholders holdIns
the same proportions respectively OF.
the majority OF the stock Of each OF
Iseveral corporations engaged in COM
nerce In the same articles among the
tates, or with foreign nations, to re-
strict competition therein. rendered
the power thus vested in the corpor-
alton or person greater, more easily
exercised, more durable and. more Ell
fective than that previously held by
the stocleholders. In these Effects
the court found restraint on com
merce.
The court then proceeded to evolve
a plan TO remedy the situation. II en-
tered decree, enJoining the standard
on company OF New jersey. from ex-
ercising any control. by reason Of It's