The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1913-10-10
WASHINGTON.
Legislative and Gem
eral Topics from
the Capital.
Washington, D. c.. Oct. 6, 1913.

Criminal prosecution of violators OF the
Federal antitrust laws OF the most effect
i've method of destroying monopoles in
business will be the program of the Viii
son administration.
This fact can be vouched for absolutely.
No official announcement of it as a policy
has been made, and it is probable that
none will be, but It became known be-
yond question that this course will be fol-
lowed by the Department of Justice in Its
campaign against the trusts.
1t is no secret and has not been for
years, that President Wilson believes in
the criminal section of the criminal act.
He has preached criminal prosecution
from the stump, from the lecture platform
and in the classroom as the only sure
means of forcing violators Of the law to
realize their responsibilities to the commu-
nifty.
Also it is known that the President, in
picking an Attorney General, selected
one whose ideas on this matter conceded
with his own. Mr. McReynold's views
were fully examined before Cabinet
portfolio was offered him.
Therefore, the fact that the administra-
ton is about to launch upon a campaign
of prosecuting offenders against the Sher-
man act as common criminals need not
be a surprise, either TO the violators
themselves or TO the people of the coun-
try whose interests this campaign is in
tended to protect
Department of Justice officials naturally
will not discuss the cases ahead OF them,
| in which they mean to ask grand jurles
for indictments. In fact, they are not dis
cussing any phase of the matter, but
when asked about it more than one indi-
Gated that such policy was foregone
conclusion when this Administration
came into power.
/ The Administration is not discouraged
| by the failure of such proceedings IN the
past. 1t is remembered that Attorney
General Wickersham fought bitterly to
| send the Beef Trust magnates to Jail and
was defeated, as he was defeated in other
cases. but this will have no effect upon
the present Attorney General, He will
ask for indictments just as often as he
can satisfy himself of guilt.
Even il juries fail to convict antitrust
violators for lack of more specific law,
the Administration believes that the
moral effect of the trials will be good.
Moreover, such Deficiencies in the law
will impress Congress with the necessity
of additional legislation. That much,
too can he counted upon.
President Wilson has repeatedly point
ed oul in public speeches that If few
milionaires, who make fortunes by GRIM
inally driving competitors out OF business,
could be sent to Jail the trust problem Of
this country would be solved. He said
this long before he was a candidate for
office.
1t is recalled in this connection that, as
the orator of Fourth of JULY celebration
at the Jamestown Exposition in 1907,
Mr.. Wilson pronounced Just such an
opinion. He had prepared q formal adj
dress for that occasion and had given it
out to the newspaper men present Just
before he went upon the rostrum, how
ever, the announcement came from Chi
cago that a S2o,o 900 fine had been
imposed upon the Standard OH Company
for a violation of the criminal section OF
the Sherman law.
Throwing away his typewriter manu-
script, the then president of Princeton
University delivered wholly eXtempo-
raneous speech based upon that fine
He declared with tremendous force that
fines were futile and that if John D.
Rockefeller had been given one years
sentence in the penitentiarv instead mon
opoly in the oil business would end al
most over night.
Moreover, President Wilson and Attor-
ney General McReynolds have reflected
profoundly upon the effect upon the bank
ing business of the United States ofprison
sentences imposed upon Morse and
Walsh. They know that this business is
cleaner than it was before. They know
that wildcat banking, If practiced at all,
is practiced so covertly that no further
prosecutions Of the Morse and Walsh
character have been necessary.
These facts support the convictions o.
this Administration that there are forms
of monopoly that are criminal and fur
thermore, that guilt is personal This
last principle was laid down by Judson
Harmon, who was Attorney General un-
der Cleveland, and has been Demo
cratic precept ever since.
| Whether the present Antitrust law is
sufficient for Jail sentence purposes or
not. the Department of Justice means to
try it out. Then, if more law is needed,
the President can turn TO Congress and
| demand If