The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-12-17
Supreme Court Cancels Per petual Contracts With
 the Railroad Owned , Coal Companies
DISSOLUTION OF
 HOLDING COMPANY
 IS ALSO ORDERED
Government Failed, the Court Held. to Show General Combination in Pennsylvania Coal Fields.
 Wickersham Undecided
 as to Further Action

Washington, December 16.-The supreme
 court of the United States today cancelled
 as violative of the Sherman antitrust
 law the contracts by which railroad owned
 coal companies in the Pennsylvania an-
 thraeite fields had purchased the output
 for all time of Independent mines.
 Attorney General Wiekersham tonight expressed the belief that the decision
 will so completely destroy the combina-
 ton which now controls the price of !. anthracite that it must result in distinct measure of relief to the public"
 The court also ordered dissolution of
 railroad control of the Temple Iron com-
 rany, by which the principal railroa Is
 and their coal companies were found 10
 have strangled a project to build a com
 reting road into the anthracite fields in
 1898. and by which monopolizing schemes
 could be put into operation handily ,n
 the future.
 No General Combination
 The government failed. the court held,
 to show general combination" to ap-
 portion tf1e amount of coal to be put
 upon the market annually by the various roads. The governments other charges as to a general combination were char
 aeterized as "indefinite"
 Minor combinations were held to have
 been improperly included in the petition
 of the government and the proceedings against them was dismissed without pref lr.diee to other actions by the government Attorney General Wicbersham was not prepared to say whether he would direct rew proceedings ass ne. these alleged combinations.
 Justice Lurton announced the unanl- nous opinion of the court, which, for the purposes of this case. consisted oe
 only six members. Justice Day took no part in the decision because of his ab- sence from the bench when the case was argued in october. 1911.
 Justice Hughes refrained from partici- rating in the action of the court, because he was special assistant 10 the attor- 1ey general when the coal business was first investigated by the government. Jus iice Pitney was not on the bench when the case was presented to the court. The suit was sent back to the judges Of the court in which 1t originated, the circuit court for eastern Pennsylvania. for the enforcement or the decision The finding of the lower court was upheld except as to the contracts with the "in- dependents"
 The railroads concerned in the case were the Philadelphia and Reading, the Lehish Valley, the Delaware, Lackawanna aaI Western, the Central railroad of New Jer- sey, the Erie and the New York, Susque- [ hanna and Western
 At the outset of his opinion. Justice 1.urton dwelt upon the great factor of
 the six railroads and their coal con- panies in anthracite mining. Over 90 Ter cent of the entire unmined area of
 anthracite were owned by them declared
 he, and over 75 per cent of the annual
 supply put upon the market was theirs
 Railroads in Undisputed Control
 He said the tremendous influence of
 these companies in this business was due
 to the liberal policy of Pennsylvania to
 encourage coal development by authoriz-
 ing all alliance between the coal prodrc- ing and the coal transporting companies As to the transportation of the coal 10 . dl. pendent of any agreement or combination the six railroads were in undisputed con trol.
 "rhe situation is one which invited con- certed action" continued tte justice, and makes exceedingly easy the accomplish E ment of any purpose to dominate the sup- ply and control the prices at the sea board. The one-foultfl supply which comes from independent operators has been sold in competition with the larger supply of the defendants. If by concert of action that source of competition be removed, the monopoly which the defend- ants. acting together may exert over pro- duction and sale will be complete" With this situation outlined the jus P-rce proceeded to see what had occurred He first considered the charge of "a gem
 eral combination to apporfion output
 Reliance was made, he aid. in support
 of this charge upon the conference of railroad presidents in 1896, when it was
 averred efforts were made to distribute ! the coal business upon the basis of the amount carried in previous years.
 s.The weight of raoof." declared Jus tice Lurton, satisfies us that whatever might have been contemplated or at
 tempted. the scheme proved abortive. Or if attempted was abandoned long before
 the bill was fled
 Other charges of general combination 1t was declared. had been properly con- sidered by the lower court. and while the supreme court had gone through the record, it would not discuss them.
 Takes Up Temple Iron Company The justice then took up the Temple Iron company feature. He detailed how Independent operators in Pennsylvania about 1898 pledged their tonnage to a new road to tidewater and how the New York, Wyoming and Western Railway company was projected in good faith on the strength of these pledges. The eight collieries ofsthe simpson and Wat kns firm were described as powerful factors in this projeok He described show, through the aid of J. P. Morgan & \ Co the Temple Iron company was