The Sentinel=record., 1914-10-21
SUIT To BREAK
THE STEEL TRUST
CICkNaSJN TELLS HOW FIVE
GREAT ORGANIZATIONS CAME
TO rUHM A TRUST.
Andrew Carnegie's Famous Letter
Causes Ripple of Excitement and
LeVity During Hearing.

Philadelphia, Get 20.-Argumen. in
the suit of the federal government to
break up the United States Steel Cor
poration on the ground that combina-
ton Of its subsidiaries is a viola ion
of the anti trust laws, was begun Aere
today before four judges sitting as
the United States court for tie dis
triot of New jersey.
Jacob NJ Dickinson, former secre-
taTy of war, who has been in charge
OF the governments side of the case
since it was instituted in October,
1911, took up the entire day in pre-
sonting the prosecution and will con
tinue tomorrow.
The entire week will he taken up
by the final arguments of the counsel
for each side.
The opening days argument FRO
dGced no sensations and there was
little brought out that was new.
Counsel for the government told
the court that the billion dollar cor
poration, in magnitude and strength
is the greatest combination of capt
tai ever brought together under one
control
MIR Dickinson told how the five
great industrial and financial inter-
ests came together and formed the
steel corporation in 1901.
The five great interests he named
were headed by the late !. p. Morgan
Andrew Carnegie, w. F. and }. H.
Moore John w. Gates and John d.
! Rockefeller He went into intricate
detail TO show how the steel corpora
TONS capital of more than 81 400,
/ 600 600 was made mp and he charged
that more than $50O,0000O0 of this is
in water
Continuing, Mr. Dickinson told how
the steel corporation and itA subsi-
diaries kept up prices, and he charged
that the men at the head of the big
combination in every way possible re-
strained trade and crushed out com
petition The famous Gary dinners
were touched upon at great length.
The purchase by the steel corpora
tion of the Tennessee Coal Iron ana
Railroad Company during the money
panic Of 1907 in which President
Roosevelt figuFed was also touched
upon. Mr. Dickinson said that the
steel corporation did not purchase the
Tennessee stock from the New York
brokers who were said to be in finan.
cial trouble, through any patriotic
motives to prevent the panic from
| spreading, but to get control of the
company. He made no reference ~
former President Roosevelt. but in
the brief filed by the government it
was set out that the representative
of the steel corporation, who went to
Washington TO consult with Mr..
Roosevelt over the propriety of pur-
chasing the Tennessee stock from the
New York brokers. had deceived the
president as t othe amount of stock
held by the New York firm
In the course of his argument Mr.
Dickinson read letters and minutes Of
corporation meetings. One letter that
caused smile to go round and les.
sened the solemnity OF the c0uri
room was one written by Andrew
Carnegie at Sllbo Castle, Scotland, in
1893. It appears that Mr. Carnegic's
company with the Illinois Steel Com
pany and other concerns, were in a
steel rail pool.
MIR Carnegie wrote a letter to his
company which appeared on the
minutes, stating that the Illinois COM
pany was 10000 tons ahead of its
proportion of the steel rail business
and that it was bad policy to allow
the Carnegie company's proportion Of
orders to fall below that of others.
IF you can fill next year at pres
ent prices you have at least forty
millions profit-but it may be fifty
To want more than that seems
wicked" said the letter.
At another time when competition
was brisk before the days of the steel
corporation and there was a scramble
among manufacturers for business,
Mr.. Carnegie wrote to his partners:
IF | were Caesar | would make no
dividends upon common stock, save
all surplus and spend it for a hoop
land cotton tie mill, for wire and nail
mills, for tube mills, for lines Of
boats upon the lakes for our manu-
featured articles and bring back
scrap"
Richard Ldndaberry of New York
will open the argument for the steel
corporation tomorrow after MIR. Dick
inson concludes.