The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1913-03-03
HARVESTER CO.
N0N0P0L|ST|C
Power of the International
Concern Lies in Such a Po-
sition, Says the Report.
HAS A SUPERIOR
CAPITAL DEMAND
Includes Connections With
]. P. Morgan and John
D. Rockefeller.

Washington. March 3.-rhc power
OF the lnternational Harvester COM
pany-the so-called Harvester trust
which h federal government is seek
ing to dissolve under he Sherman
law, lies in its monopolistic position.
its superior command of capital. in
Guiding its connections With J. p. Nor
a and company and John u. Rookie
Teller, and certain objectionable com-
petitiNe methods. according to Luther
Conant. Jr.. commissioner of corpora
1ions. in his report on the operations
Of h giant corporation, submitted to
President Taft today.
The chief features of the Inter-
national Harvester company's opera
tons says Mr.. Conant, ARE the SUBJ
stantial maintenance of its monopolis-
tic position in the harvesting machine
business. originally acquired through
combination. and its extensions on a
large scale into new lines of the farm
machinery industry. The company has
the acquisition of some of its chief
rivals in the harvesting machine bust
ness: in part by using its monopoliSti,
advantage in these harvesting machine
lines to force the sale of its new lines.
in part by certain Objectionable COM
petitive methods: II especially
through its exceptional command OF
capital, itself the result of combina-
ton"
The harvester investigation was
made in response to a senate resolu-
ton passed several years ago. Re.
Gently a request was made by repre-.
sentatives of the company that the
report be withheld pending the out
come of the antitrust suit. out Presi-
dent Taft decided to make it public.
The combination, the report de-
r1araS- Was ARRANGED in 1g0o nv the
former owners Of five leading COM
peting concerns. and was not. "as FIRE.
quently asserted" a mere sale OF their
properties to new interests. On this
point Mr.. Conant says:
1T has been represented in formal
testimony by officers Of the company
and its financial promoter, G. W.
Perkins, then of the firm of j. p.
Morgan & Co. hat it's organization
was o the result of concerted action
by the former competing owners, but
merely of the purchase of their pro-
pertieS by new and outside interests.
Documentary evidence gathered by the
bureau completely disposes of this
contention and shows that the princi.
pal competing interests considered and
discussed among themselves the for.
nation Of this combination and were
active in bringing 1t about"
Morgan Helped Out.
Great resources came to the COM
pany. it is asserted, through the COM
bination. the financial support of j
P. Morgan and company. its fiscal
agents. and large loans secured from
John D. Rockefeller. father-in-law of
q member Of the Mccormick family
which owns a large portion of the
total stock Of the corporation.
These exceptional resources, Mr..
Conant maintains. not only enable the
harvester company to secure the
economics of large scale operations,
which, as a rule. give it marked ad-
vantages in manufacturing costs, but
also enable it TO maintain a very
elaborate selling organization. by vir-
tue of the variety and extent of its
business. Furthermore. they give it
a great advantage in extending cred.
its to purchasers, an exceedingly i'm
portant feature Of the farm machin-
cry industry"
Between 1903 and 1904, the COM
pany is declared by the commissioner,
to have acquired secretly, control Of
d. NJ. Osborne & Co.. its chief COM
petitor. the Minnie Harvester COM
pany,. the Aultman-Miller company.
and the Keystone company. These are
referred to as bogus independents"
The secret control Of the Osborne
company, the report says, was main
tanned for nearly two years. while it
was being advertised as an %independ.
ent concern. These representations.
1t Is alleged, were supported by its
managers in sworn statements that it
was an Independent company. Two
OF the chief stockholders of the Os-
borne company, Mr.. Conant adds,
agreed to refrain from engaging in.
dependently in the same lines of bust
ness for ten years The report saws
that the Harvester company's claim
that the ownership was concealed in
some cases merely to facilitate the
liquidation of the old concern is MOI
regarded by the bureau of
tons as a justification of the practice
These acquisitions. the report con.
tinues. were followed by the
extending its manufacture from such
harvesting machinery as grain binders
and mowers to the so-called new
lines Of farming tools such as tiljare
implements. spreaders, farm
wagons. gasoline engines, tractors ana
cream separators. Compulsion or
dealers to take the company's new"
lines by reason Of it's m%onopolistic