The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1912-01-24
"A TAFT SUITS
AGAINST TRUSTS
President Has EQuaICd Numeri-
Ca|Iy ROoseVeIt's Record.
SO CASES IN LAST q YEARS

Corporation Regarded as Most I'm
portsnt Of Ail-Csse Of international
Harvester Company.
President Taft has equaled the rec
ord of President Roosevelt's admins
trations for trust prosecutions under
the Sherman law. The total number
Is forty-four. In Roosevelt's seven
years eighteen bills In equity were
filed, twenty-five indictments returned
and one forfeiture proceeding begun.
In the little less than three years of
the Taft administration there have
been twenty-five civil suits and like
number of indictments.
The Roosevelt record was equaled
with the filing at Macon. Ca, Of a
civil suit against the so called naval
stores trust and the returning Of in
dictments against the alleged coaster
brake trust ut Buffalo.
From July 2. 1890, to July /, 1911,
there were eighty eight cases brought
under the Sherman act. These were
divided:
President Harrison's administration
-Four bills in equity and three indict-
ments.
President -Cleveland-Four bills In
equity two indictments and two infor-
nations for contempt.
President McKinley-Three bills I'm
equity.
President Roosevelt - Eighteen bills
L.. .,,,t, a 4.
one forfeiture proceeding.
President Taft-Twenty-two bills in
equity and twenty-five indictments.
The forty-four cases In the Roose-
welt regime include the famous North
ern Securities case. the suit to restrain
the beef trust. two suits against the
Federal Salt company. suit for the dis
solution of the Jacksonville Wholesale
Grocers' association. one to dissolve
the General Paper company. one
against Armour and other Chicago
meat packers. two suits In the tobacco
trust cases, one against the Terminal
Railroad association of st. Louis, one
to restrain the Otis Elevator company,
one against the National Association
American Ice company. one to dissolve
the Standard Oil Company of New
Jersey, one to dissolve q combination
among the anthracite coal carrying
roads, one to prevent the operations
of the powder trust. one against the
Union Pacific Railroad company,
charging conspiracy i'm violation of
the Sherman law: one against the New
York, New Haven and Hartford Rail-
road company. alleging an attempt to
combine under one common control the
various steam and electric systems in
important prosecutions.
Among the most farreaching cases
of the Roosevelt administration was
the suit against the American Naval
Stores company. This was declared to
be combination in restraint of trade
in selling turpentine and its products.
The defendants were convicted in the
lower court. Fines aggregating ST.
800 were assessed. and two defendants
were sentenced to serve three months
in Jail An appeal was taken to the
United States supreme court and is on
the docket awaiting oral arguments.
In its opinion on this case the court
will for the first time construe the
penal clauses Of the Sherman act.
The most important Of the prosecu-
lions instituted during the Taft adj
ministration were the cases against
the American Sugar Refining company.
against the Imperial Window Glass
company. two cases against the Ma
tional Packing company and one
against the Armour Packing company,
q suit to restrain the Missouri Pacific
and twenty-four other railroads from
increasing freight rates. which pro-
duced an abandonment of the plan; a
case alleging combination by the
General Electric company to control
the business i'm incandescent electric
lamps. one to break up the transatlan-
tic steamship pool. one charging con-
spiracy against the officers of the
Eastern States Retail Lumber Deal
ers' association. one against the lum-
Der secretaries bureau of Information,
covering twenty-three states from
Pennsylvania to the Pacific coast. and
other suits of less consequence.
Since July |, 1911, suit has been
instituted for the dissolution Of the
United States, Steel corporation. which
surpasses in importance and aggregate
of wealth represented the Standard oil
and tobacco cases. Evidence has been
accumulated for the prosecution of the
International Harvester company. but
negotiations are pending for a volun-
tary REIMBURSEMENT Of that concerns
methods to avoid prosecution.