The Washington herald., 1913-04-13

PRESIDENT WOULD
EXEMPT UNIONS
Wilson Said to Be Opposed to
Enforcing Antitrust Act
Against Them.
DIFFERS WITH TAFT
First Announcement Was that the Chief
DIFFERS WITH TAFT
First Announcement Was that the Chief
Executive Approved the Veto
of His Predecessor.

President Wilson does not believe that
the Sherman antitrust act should be
enforced against labor unions or CO.
operative associations of farmers. His
position on this question is directly OPP
posed to that of President Taft, who
vetoed the sundry civil bill on the last
day of his administration, because it
prohibited the expenditure of any part
of the appropriation made available for
antitrust prosecutions in proceedings
against labor unions or agricultural as
sociations. President Wilson's attitude
on this question became known yester-
day following a conference at the White
House between Mr.. Wilson and Senator
Martin of Virginia and Representative
Fitzgerald of New York, chairmen re-
spectively of the Senate and House
Committees on appropriations. The sun
dry civil bill will be reintroduced in
the House Monday i'm precisely the form
in which il was disapproved by Presi-
dent Taft. There is good reason to be-
lieve that the limitation placed upon the
appropriations allowed to enable the At
torney General to prosecute combina-
tions in restraint of trade will be bit
terly fought in view of the strong mes
sage on the subject forwarded to Con-
gress by Mr.. Taft just before he went
out of Office.
Language of Bill.
The language TO which Mr.. Taft took
exception reads as follows:
That no part Of this money Ga $780,
coo appropriation shall be spent in the
prosecution of any organization or lndl-
vidual for entering into any combination
or agreement having in view the increas-
ing of wages, shortening OF hours, or
lettering the conditions of labor, or for
any act done in futherance thereof not
in itself unlawful; Provided further.
that no part of this appropriation shall
be expended for the prosecution OF pro-
ducers OF farm products and associa-
tions of farmers who cooperate and or
ganize in an effort to and for the pur-
pose to obtain and maintain a fair and
reasonable price for their products.
This provision was passed by the House
land the Senate with scarcely any oP-
position. In fact, members were not
aware that the limitation had been in
corporated in the bill until President
Taft's veto message was received. Presi-
dent Taft characterized the provision
as class legislation OF the most vicious
sort" Mr.. Taft expressed the opinion
that to permit certain classes to COM
bine, while denying it to others, would
be a crime against the State" He said
further:
AT a time when there is widespread
complaint of the high cost of living II
certainly would be anomalous to put on
the statute books of the United States
an act, in effect, preventing the prose-
cution of combinations of producers of
farm products for the purpose Of arti-
fcia1iy controlling prices, and the evil
is not removed although it may be
masked, by referring to the purpose OF
the organization as to obtain and main
tain a fair and reasonable price LOT
their products.
Fflibuster Killed Bill.
The House promptly passed the sun
dry civil bill over Mr.. Tafts vote, but
a vote in the Senate was prevented by
a filibuster, engineered by Senator ROM
dexter of Washington.
Informal announcement was made a
week or so ago that President Wilson
aDproved the veto of his predecessor
and that Re would ask that the sundry
civil bill he amended accordingly. The
fact that the bill is to be reintroduced
with the approval of the President with
out amendment has excited a good deal
of comment in Washington. To some ii
is accepted as foreshadowing a part at
least of the programme of antitrust
legislation that will in due season be
submitted to Congress by the new ad-
ministration.
According to Democratic leaders, Ia
bor unions and agricultural associations
were supposed to have been made ex-
empt from prosecution when the Sher-
man antitrust act was passed. They
declare that such associations were
brought within the terms of the law by
broad Interpretation of the court. This
was their reason for supporting the
limitation to which exception was taken
by former President Taft. They declare
that when they come TO amend the anti
trust laws that labor unions and agri-
cultural associations will be specifically
exempted from prosecution as restraints
of trade