The Julesburg grit-advocate., 1912-06-13

1 Pssskasas TaftS sdninAstsatioa has
breksa III esceNds fer psessestteas
brsagAt sad voa sAAae ths Sharnaa
snt1+svst NO. without tsas q fsyos
4 hss brosght to the bar e Jast3ee coz
poeati0as and psesons eAeasing n tile
eai combinations in restraint e trs1&
ths ultimate purpose oe saeh es0bisa-
ttos bsans to create oooopsly aa1 70
raise tbs peiess - IT. pes1se4A II
tw0 years and easSea uoaths e bis
sdministradOa Prssadeas Tan has
caused 70 b. hrossht fous Dsss evil
ssits and fifteen more crtninal prose
eudoos thaa Nj. Roosevelt brouSht IN
the seven and oas-half ysars Il his a.
ministsauoa.
Until Nj. TAFT became ths prstdsnt
the administTat5oa Of Ar. Roassvelt
held the rsesrd II both partieularA
Thus has PrsGidsat Tan. VIE vas M.
Roossvslt's right arm dssins bis last
sdministratsa. kept his pledge b The
American psopis to uphold and main.
tsin the policies Of his predecessor in
punishing the criminals and undesira-
bio e!ement in the big business Of the
country.
In the Republican national platform
Of 1908 reference was made to the
prosecution Of evil trusts and monopo-
lies a. oss Of the great accomplish.
ments Of the Roosevelt administration.
and the platform declared that the
Sherman antitrust law had been .
wholesome instrument for good in the
hands OF wise and fearless executive
!n his speech OF acceptance Air. Taft
pledged himself to the enforcement OF
this law and has kept his promise.
PrebIsms Confronting Tsft
Stripped Of controversy a. to the
exact meaning OF certain language OF
the Sherman antitrust act. the ques-
tions that had to I've determined By
those In administrative authority and
those who judicially determine their
acts were. first. how effective the law
vas to reach the great aggrcgations
OF formerly competitive producers and
dealers. individual and corporate. who.
through intercorporate stockholding
mergers. consultations and otherwise.
had acquired 70 great a control over
q particular line of industry as to en-
able them to dominate It and to ex-
clude or admit competition as they
might choose upon their own terms.
Secondly. to determine whether that
construction Of the law was correct
which had been given to 1t by some Of
the judges Of the circuit court In New
York In the tobacco case and 10 the
opinions of some OF the justices of the
supreme court In other cases to tho
effect that any combination which In
any respect operated to restrain to any
degree a pre-existing competition In
Interstate commerce was necessarily
condemned by law.
In the three years Of the Taft ad-
minlstration all Of the sixteen cases
left pending by the pre:ious admins
tration have been disposed of except
two. which have been argued and sub
uitted to the supreme court of the
United States and are now awaiting
decision. OF the remaining cases the
Standard OIL cnse was argued early
during the present administration and.
after an appeal. decided entirely In
favor of the government. The same
was also true of the tobacco cases,
with the ultimate result OF the disIn.
tesrntion of that big trust into four
teen separate and distinct corpora
tions. This. 1t Is believed. will effec-
lively prevent II continuance Of the
monopo'istic conditions complained Of.
Taft trust Record.
During the Taft administration up to
February. 1912. twenty-five civil suits
have been brought and forty criminal
indictments found under the Sherman
law. making In all sixty-two proceed.
tngs. A Il result there were fifteen
indictments. aud eleven OF these In.
Eight out Of twelve defendants were
convicted on one indictment after trial
by jury and their conviction confirmed
by the court OF appeals. and thirteen
criminal prosecutions are pending
y brief review of the cases brought
under TIE antitrust law during the ad-
miniStrhtion demonstrates clearly its
value to the American people in their
protection of that equality Of opportu-
nifty which is declared by the platform
of the Republican party to be the right
OF every citizen.
Reference to few Of the antitrust
cases brought by the Taft administra.
ton gives an excellent idea of the hard
ships some of these Illegal combina-
tionS entail upon consumers. In the
prosecution of IL case against number
of individuals who attempted to corner
all the free cotton remaining of the
crop oe 1903 1t resulted In raise in
the price of that commodity to the