The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-12-09
Because They Allow Old Di-
rectors to Govern the
Separated Parts
ATT. GEN. McREYNOLDS
MAKES COMPLAINT.
Otherwise He Has Nothing
to Say About the Sherman
Law in His Annual Report

Washington. Dec. a.--Attorney Gen
eral McReynoIds in his first report AZ
head of the law department of the gov
ernment submitted to Congress to-day
makes few recommendations for leglsla-
tion. The changes he urges have more
to do with the machinery Of courts than
with the fabric of the law.
On an antitrust legislative program
the attorney general was silent. lie
asked Congress for no amendment to
the Sherman act, the rod his department
uses to bring trusts to terms, and he
points out no fault in it's operation.
President Wilson, however, intends to
send a special message on the trust ques-
tion to Congress in the near future, and
that undoubtedly viii embody some OF
the attorney generals views.
Attorney General McReynolds made it
clear, however, that SO long as he was
head of the department he would oppose
court DEGREES in antitrust suits where
the combination was dissolved into parts
under the control of the same stock
holders. That plan, adopted in the
Standard Oil and Tobacco cases, he calls
Fundamental deiect" and later adds
in the same connection "my fixed pur-
pose is to oppose any plan of dissolution
which would leave the separate parts OF
the unlawful combination under the con-
troll of the same set OF men,"
The attorney general offers a novel
solution of the problem of superannuated
federal judges. Such judges under the
constitution hold office during good be-
havior, although they may retire at the
age of 20, after 10 years seTvivce.
Il suggest" says the attorney general,
"an act providing that when any judge
below the supreme court fails to avail
himself of the privilege of retiring now
granted by the law, that the president
be required, with the advice and consent
of the Senate, to appoint another judge,
who shall preside over the affairs of the
court and have precedence over the older
one. This will insure at all times tho
presence Of a judge sufficiently active to
discharge promptly and adequately the
duties of the court"
Mr.. MeReynolds suggests that clerks
of U. S. courts should be appointed for
specified terms and subject to removal
by the president for cause and asks that
provision be made for a review by the
supreme court of the now final decisions
of the court of customs appeal, on APP
plication only by the government He
approves the bill introduced by Repre-
sentative Clayton giving the supreme
court power to promulgate rules for
trials on the law side of federal courts.
He reminds Congress also of needs of
changes in his Office and an increase in
the salaries paid. He terms the pres
ent salaries moderate for the character
and amount of work to be performed"
Coming to review of the events with
which his department mas been concerned
for the fiscal year, the attorney general
shows that when he took office So cases
We're pending under the Sherman law,
and that since March eight cases have
been begun. Investigations of complaints
that the law has been violated pour into
the department by the score each month,
and come from all parts of the country.
I'm many instances" the report reads,
"the investigation has failed to disclose
facts which would justify the institution
of formal proceedings but notice of the
activity of the government has impeled
officers of large industrial corporations
to curtail dangerous tendencies. The bu-
reau of investigation has looked into
thousands of cases of all kinds, those
concerning violations of the Sherman
law and the national banking act aver
aging together more than so month.
Through the bureau of investigations
and corps of local white slave officers,
the department" the attorney general
says, "has vigorously carried on the
work of prosecution of offenders and
has helped suppress the traffic. Out of
the S475,000 allotted for the detection
and prosecution of crime $4,000 has
been set aside for that work and the at
torney general concludes "the depart
ment feels that very material progress
has been made, particularly during the
past year, in suppressing the most vic
ious features of this traffic.