River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1913-12-25
BELL CORPORATION
PLANS To DISSOLVE
MOVE OF AMERICAN TELEPHONE
AND TELEGRAPH AVOIDS
PROSECUTION.
AFTER MANY CONFERENCES
Attorney General Announces Corciu.
sion of observation-disclosures VIII
son Praises Attitude of
Company.

Washington, Dec. 22.-Attorney Gen
eral McReynolds has made public de-
tails of an agreement for the re-organ-
iZation of the American Telephone e
Telegraph company which will prevent
litigation to dissolve that corporation
under the antitrust act and under
which competitive conditions will be
restored in the telephone service of
the country anG the combine will dis,
pose of its holdings in the Western
Union Telegraph company.
Company Originates Plan.
The reorganization plan originated
with the company, although it follow
ed many reports that suit against it
might be filed. 1t was regarded by
department of justice officials last
night as the most striking indication
offered in a decade that big business"
had come to the conclusion that it was
better to follow the Sherman law than
to fight it.
The plan met not only the approval
of the attorney general and his "chiet
trust buster G. c. Todd, and officials
of the subsidiaries OF the combine, but
was heartily approved by President
Wilson. III letter to Mr. McReynolds
the president expressed his admiration
for the attitude Of the telephone COM
pany and his conviction that such con-
duct on the part of business men
meant a building up Of business on
sound and permanent lines.
Announcement Significant.
Coming on the heels of the an
nouncement that Postmaster General
Burleson is seriously interested in gov
eminent ownership of telephone lines,
the action Of the department of JUS
tice took an added significance and
some officials went so far as to ex-
press the opinion that it indicated that
legislation to acquire the country's
telephone business would not be
pressed by the administration at the
present session.
In brief, the agreement provides
that:
The American Telephone & Tele-
graph company will dispose promptly
of its holdings in the Western Union
Telegraph company, SO that each con.
cern shall be under distinct manage
ment, and so that all shall be entirely
Independent. The company will not
hereafter acquire control of other tele.
phone companies and where control
of telephone companies has been ac-
CURED, but no actual physical union
has been effected. the American Tele-
phone & Telegraph will submit the
course it is to pursue to the interstate
commerce commission and to the de.
partment of justice.
Access to Toll Lines.
The company will promptly make
arrangements by which all other tele-
phone companies in the United States
shall have access to it's toll lines.
Department officials declared that
the plan gave the government every
thing and more than it could have
hoped to obtain in court. Officials
were more than pleased with the last
part of the agreement, by which the
Bell company gives long distance SER
vice to subscribers Of other companies
and did rot deny that they never had
hoped to gain such point by suit I'M
der the antitrust act.
The announcement Of the agreement
for reorganization came last night at
the conclusion Of several months of
negotiation in which the attorney gen
eral and Mr.. Todd and Mr.. Kingsbury,
Theodore n. Vail, president OF the
American Telephone and Telegraph,
and other parties on both sides con-
ferred.