The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-11-08
Attorney General Gregory
 Hands Down Decision Up- holding Legality of Meth ods of Securing Fund
TREASURY OFFICIALS
 BELIEVE SUCCESS OF
 POOL NOW ASSURED
More Than SS0,00O,00O AL ready Raised by Northern Banks = Practically All the Remainder Has Been Promised

Washington. November s.--Ne viois- tfon of federal antitrust laws is threat cned by the cotton loan fund pInn re- gently perfected by bankers and meps- bers of the federal reserve board. sc- cording to opinion handed down late today by Attorney General Gregg ory at the request of President Will son.
 Success of the s1s5, 900, 900 pool now ia believed by treasury officials to be assured More than sso.Ooo.oo of the s1Oo,ooo.ooo to be raised among north ern bankers already has been sub scribed and practically all of the re- mainder, 1t is undertood, had been promised on condition of a favorable opinion from the Attorney General. New England fnanciers 1t was said. were reluctant to enter the plan until definitely assured that, tho method of raising the fund would not be con- structed as unlawful
 Attorney General Gregory's opinion was rendered after conference with President Wilson. The treasury depart
 
 ing correspondence:
 The White House, November 2, 1914 My Dear Mir. Attorney General; am sending the enclosed papers. submitted to me by the Secretary of the Treasury, | in order to ascertain whether In your opinion the proposed cotton loan fund may be lawfully formed know that l 1t is contrary to the practice ef sna. ijepsrtment to give opinions before- hand as to contemplated transactions. and l think that such opinions ought never in ordinary circumstances to be given, but the circumstances with re- gard to the handling of the great cot ton crop which have been created by the European war are most extraordi- nary and seem to justify extraordinary action. It Is for that reason that ven- 1 lure to ask you to depart In this casa from the usual practice of your depart ment. .. Class by Itself 'It occurs to me that the fund con- templated stands In a class by Itself It Is hardly conceivable that such arr engagements should become settled prac- tIces or furnish precedents which would be followed in the regular course of business or under ordinary conditions. They are as exceptional in their nature as the circumstances they are meant to deal with and can hardly be looked upon as, by possibility even, dangerous lprecedents. It is for this reason that l l feel the more Justified in asking for your opinion in the premises. Cordially and sincerely yours,
 xA " f IN fNovember T. 1914. | Dear MT. President: 1 have the honor 1 to reply to your request for my opin- lions as to whether the federal an- thrust laws (the so-called Sherman act, the co-called Clayton act. and the trade commission acD would be Yio- Hated In any respect by the carrying ont of n plan which has been devised for raising and administering fund | of s135. .00O. co to be lent on the security 1 of cotton A copy of the plan Is attached hereto:
 | countries which take annually abous | 900 Oo0 bales of American cotton-mors l than half tho crop-are now engaged In war Trade between the United States and those countries in some cases yir- l tually has come to complete stop, ana l in others has been seriously hindered. | Foreign exchange has been badly demor- allzed In consequence of these extraor- dInary conditions 1t has been impossipio | to obtain in the usual ways the large amount of cash required to liduidate the indebtedness incurred in the course of raising and marketing the cotton crop Plan Proposed ITO meet this situation the plan in question has been proposed It contem- plates the making up by syndicate, (Continucd on Page EighD