Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1911-12-07
TAXES UP TRUST PROBLEM.
0nlyM Matter Touched On In President $
Message to Congress
Additional Legislation to Strengthen Present
Statutes Is Recommended Defends Stand
ard Oil and Tobacco Decisions

1 its unlawful dominion. Under The de-
| cree these defendants win hold amounts
! Of stock In the various distributes COM
| panies ranging from Il per cent. as q
| maximum TO ~ per cent. a. q minimum.
| except In the case OF one small company.
| the Porto Rican Tobacco company. In
which they will hold . per cent The
1 twenty -nine individual defendants are en-
| Joined for three years from buying any
| stock except from each other. and the
| group - thus prevented from extending
it, control during that period. All parties
| TO the suit. and the new companies who
are made parties, are enjoined perpetual
iy from n any way effectfng any COM
bination between any of the companies
In violation Of the statute by
way Of resumption of the old trust Each
Of the fourteen companies IL enjoined
from acquiring stock In any Of the othera
All these companies are entoined from
having common directors or officers, or
common buying or selling agents. or COM
mon Offices. or lending money to each
other.
slss Of New Companies.
Objection was made by certain inde-
pendent tobacco companies that this set
tlement was unjust because II left com.
paiucS Win rcEy takBo Captlat IA 1870
business. and that the settlement that
would be effective ia. put all on an equal
ity would be \ division Of the capital and
plant Of tho trust into small fractions In
amount more nearly equal to that OF each
OF tho Independent companies- This con-
tention results from . misunderstanding
Of the antitrust law and Its purpose.
II IL not intended thereby to prevent the
accumulation OF large capital Ia business
enterprises in which such a combination
can secure reduced cost Of production.
sale and distribution. II 10 directly
against such an Aggregation OF capital
only when fts purpose 10 that OF sunin9
competition. enhancing or controlling
prices and establishing q monopoly. IL
we shah have by the decree defeated these
purposes and restored competition be-
tween the large units into which the cap
ital and plant have been divided, We
shall have accomplished the useful pur-
pose Of the statute.
confiseatIon Not the Purpose Of the
Statute.
It 10 not the purpose OF the statute to
confiscste the property and capital OF the
offending trusts. Methods OF punishment
By fine or Imprisonment OF the Individual
offenders. by f,ne OF the corporation. or
by forfeiture Of its goods In transporta-
ton. are provided. but the proceeding In
equity u q specific remedy to stop the
operation Of the trust by Injunction and
prevent the future use OF the plant and
capital In violation Of the statute
venture to say that not In the history
Of American law has decree more ef-
fective for such . purpose been entered
by court than tina. against the Tobacco
trust.
common-stock Ownership.
II has been assumed that the present
pro-rata and common ownership In all
these companies by former stockholders
OF the trust would insure continuance
OF the same old single control OF all the
companies into which the trust has by
decree been dislntegrated. This is er-
roneous and 10 based upon the assumed In
efficacy and innocuousness Of judicial In
junctions The companies are entoined
from cooperation or combination: they
have different managers. directors. pur-
chasing and sales agents. II all OF any
OF the numerous stockholders. reaching
into the thousands. attempt to secure
concerted actin OF the companies with
view to the control OF the market. their
number is 30 largo that such an attempt
could not we'll be concealed and It's prime
movers and all its participants would be
at once subject to contempt proceedings
and Imprisonment Of a summary charac-
ter. The immediate result oflthe present
situation will necessarily be activity by
all the companies under different man.
ayers and then competition must follow.
or there win be activity by one company
and staxnatlon by another. Only short
time win inevitably lead 20 change in
ownership Of the stock. as all oppor-
tunity for continued cooperation must
disappear.
Movement for Repeal Of the Antitrust
Law.
But now that the antitrust act is seen
to be effective for the Accomplishment, Of
the purpose Of It's enactment. we are met
by q cry from many different quarters
for its repeal II Is said to be obstructive
OF business progress. TO be an attempt TO
restore old-fashioned methods OF de-
structive competition between small units.
and TO make impossible those useful COM
binations OF capital and the reduction OF
the cost OF production that are essential
to continued prosperity and normal
growth.
In the recent decisions the Supreme
court makes clear that there Is nothing
in the statute which condemns combina-
tions Of capital or mere bigness OF plant
organized 70 secure economy In produc-
tion and a reduction Of It's cost. II Is only
when the purpose or necessars effect OF
the organization and maintenance OF the
combination or the aggregation OF Inn
mense size are the sitting of composition.
actual and potential. and the enhancing
of prices and establishing mcnopoly.
that the statute Is violated Mere size
10 no sin against the law. The merging
of two or more businec plants necessarily
hat no ,,rfto
thus combined, but this elimination Is In
Of the statute only when
the combination Is made for purpose OF
ending this particular competition In or
der 10 secure control OF. and enhance.
prices and create monopoly.
Lack of Defniteness In the Statute.
The complaint Is made OF the statute
that II Is not sufficiently definite in It's
description OF that which Is forbidden. TO
enable business men to avoid Its viola
ten. The suggestion Il. that we may
have . ccmbination OF two corporations.
which may run on for ye m. and thai \
subsequently the attorney general may
conclude that Il was violation OF the
statute. and that which was supposed By |
the combiners 70 DO inocent then turns
out to Be combination In violation of |
the statute The Enswer to this hypo-
thetical case II that when men attempt |
to an,ass stupendous capital as will enable |
them TO suppress competition. control |
prices and establish a monopoly they i
know the purpose OF their acts Men do |
not do such thing without having II |
clearly In mind.
New Remedies Suggested.
Much is said OF the repeal OF this stat
ute and OF constructive legislation intend