Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1911-07-28
INT REAPER TRUST.
CHANGE is MADE THAT MORGAN
AND HARVESTER INTERESTS
UNITED.
REBATE is PAID ON STEEL
Townsend Report on Which Former
Attorney General sonaparts Failed
to Act Goes Before lnvestI0ators--
Wicksrsham 10 q Witness.

Washington. That charges were
made to Attorney General Charles J.
Bonaparte during his term Of offlcS
that the United States Steel corpora-
ton gave refund Of three dollars . ton
to the harvester combine companies
was revealed to the house steel trust"
investigating committee. Representa-
tive Stanley Of Kentucky, chairman OF
the committee. introduced into the
proceedings voluminous report on
the harvester trust made to Mr. Bona
parte in 1908 BY Burdette G. Towns
send, = special investigator Of the de-
partment. now assistant district attor-
ney Of Oregon.
In describing the organization OF
the group Of larger companies In the
Harvester combine the McCormicks.
Deering, Plano, Wardner. Bushnell,
Glessner and the Milwaukee Harves-
ter companies, Mr.. Townsend reported
to Mr.. Bonaparte:
1T appears that there was an un-
usual concentration of the capital
stock Of these Ave companies. II
was all owned and controlled by four
families, the McCormicks, the Deer
ings, the Joneses and the Gfessners.
The pooling OF their holdings was all
that was necessary to create q trust.
All these people lived in Chicago.
Another fact is interesting. Har-
old Mccormick Zone Of the heaviest
stockholders Of the Mccormick COM
pany), Is son-in-law OF John D.
Rockefeller. The Mccormick com.
pany was therefore already distantly
related by marriage to the great Amer
lean family OF trusts. J. Pierpont
Morgan is the trust architect usually
employed BY the Rockefeller inter
ests.
HE il good builder and receives
fabulous fees for his work. George
w. Perkins Is his associate"
Attorney General Wickersham, sum-
moned as witness, testified that he
had never seen the Townsend report
before. He promised that Townsend
would testify later. He did not know
why the harvester case was not
pressed In 10000. Il surmised," he
added, "that the case was held up
| pending the Supreme court decisions
in the tobacco and Standard OIL cases
involving the same points"
Mr.. Stanley announced that . sub
poena had been issued for Mr.. Bona
parte, who is now in Canada, and that
an effort would be made to ascertain
from him and from other government
| oficials why there had not been 2
prosecution Of the International Har.
vester company upon Townsend'a
charges. Mr.. Stanley also announced
| his intention Of endeavoring to show
a close connection between the United
States Steel corporation and the Ia.
ternational Harvester company. e;
Mr.. Townsend in his report particu.
larly referred to the price paid to J.
Pierpont Morgan & Co. in the har-
vester deal. declaring that $4,000, oo0
is very high price for the simple
service Of suggesting to persons how
they can agree in legitimate trans
action. It is not unusual" he said.
"in illegal transactions, such as Great
Ing a trust, which can evade the
laws Doubtless, II proceedings were
instituted against the international
Harvester company, the manner Of its
defense will demonstrate that the tee
was earned" s