Arizona republican., 1915-03-19
ASSOCIATED
 | PRESS |S k0T LAW BREAKER
Attorney General in Dis posing of Complaint for Alleged Violation of Anti Trust Act Says No Ground for Action
ASSOCIATED PRESS DIsPATCH1

WASHINGTON. March 1S.-Attor- ney General Gregory has written a let ter addressed 10 James H. Beck, coun- sel for the Sun association, dispOsing of the complaint against the Associated Press for alleged violation of the feder- al antitrust act made by the New York Sun Printing and Publishing associa- tion
 The attorney generals letter, dated March F, makes known that there is no ground for action by the federal au- thorities against the Associated Press under the antitrust act.
 The attorney general says in part:
 Assuming that the kind of service in which the Associated Press is >Hgaged in interstate commerce Ga question not free from doubD l am nevertheless of the opinion that it is no violation of the antitrust act for group of news papers to form an association to col feet and distribute news for their com mon benefit and to that end to agree to furnish news collected by them only to each other or to the association, pro- vided that no attempt is made to pre- vent members from purchasing or Oth- erwise obtaining news from rival agen- cies. And if that is true, the corollary must be true namely, that newspapers desiring to form and maintain such an organization may determine who shall be and who shall not be their asso- ciates.'
 The attorney generals letter is the , result of a petition filed on Feb. 3. 1914. ] by the Sun Printing and Publishing as | sociation, asking the attorney general to make an investigation and then to | istitute proceedings against the Asso- ciated Press.
 The chief point of interest in the at 1 tOrney generals letter is his statement as to the right of a group of newspap- CTS to form an association under given 1 conditions, as follows:
 | Assuming that the kind of service 1 in which the Associated Press is en- gagged is interstate commerce Ca ques- tion not free from doubt I am never | theless of the opinion that it is no viO- 1 lation of the antitrust act for group of newspapers to form an association | to collect and distribute news for their own benefit and to that end to agree to furnish the news collected by them to 1 each other or to the association. pro- | vided that no attempt is made to pre- i vent the members from purchasing or
 otherwise obtaining news from riva l agencies. If that is true. the corellary
 must be true. namely that newspapers | desiring to form and maintain such ar organization may determine who shal
 be and who shall not be their associ- l ates.
 This, of course. is not to Say that
 such an association might not develop
 into an unlawful monopoly. The fact:
 adduced however in my opinion. d,
 not show that that has happened ir
 the case of the Associated Press"
 Frank B. Moves. president of tn As.
 sociated Press referring to the attor.
 ney generals letter said tonight:
 ''The clean bill of health given tn,
 Associated Press by the attorney gen
 eral after his study of the complaint O
 the New York Sun is, of course highl,
 gratifying to the membership of tn,
 OrganiZatOn
 ''It is more gratifying because it wa
 the result of a long, careful and search
 ing scrutiny by the department of jus
 tice of the object and form of the or
 ganization. it's scope and it's methods.
 Tt is convincing proof of the utte
 lack of foundation of such attacks a
 that of the Sun that such. an investiga
 tion found nothing in the methods an
 practices Of the organization properl subject to the attacks made by the Stu
 and nothing in it's bylaws at all ob
 iectonable save one section Ca provis ion similar to which had been uphel
 many years ago by the highest couy of New York) that has been a dea letter and never operative in any sens since it's adoption at the time the pres ent organization was founded in I9O, To those of who have had tn responsibility of the conduct of the As sOciated Press, this opinion of Attor ney General Gregory is the more pleas ing because he has accepted the Sun contention (thOugh with some doubt that full responsibility attached t the organization under the anti true laws and has therefore based hi ! scrutiny and his exoneration upon tn ! suns own contention
 Those charged with the manage { ment of the Associated Press have CT { deavored to govern its conduct with { full appreciation of the undoubted fac ! that it's course should be not only leg ! ally but ethically controlled by tn ! highest standards and in this We hay felt that we are succeeding-so far a ] it is humanly possible to succeed. Tt is not the custom of the Associat ed Press to either shrick for or shrin frQip ia !.st iaa iass<: Gf