Norwich bulletin., 1920-03-02


 three decision today, the supreme court refused to dissolve the United | States Steel Corporation and it's num- erous subsidiaries comprising the so- called steel trust The governments long fought suit for dissolution of the iron and steel trade ccmbina ton for alleged violation or the sherman antitrust law was dismissed with absolution for the corporation from all existing charg- es. Placing the high courts Q. K. on the steel corporation were Chief Jus tice White and Associate Justices Mc- kenna. who announced the majority opinion. Holes and Van Deventer. Jus tice Day gave the dissenting opinion, which was joined by Justices Pltney and Clarke. Justices McReynOlds and Brandies took no part, the former hay ing haen attorney general during the Htiratio nand the latter having ex- pressed opinions regarding it before appointment to the bench.
 Primarily the decree officially brands the steel corporation as good" combination with it's legality established,
 Further. the court held that mere size hiEness ar preponderance in in- dustry of corporate combinations is not alone sufficient cause for their dis solution.
 The court also gave new and far reaching judicial interpretation or ap- pl,cation Of the Sherman law, anala- gous to it's famous rule of reason in the Standard oil and tobacco trust cases by declaring that public interest must be considered in applying the law The public interest, it was held, would not be served and might be in- iured by dissolving the steel con- cern.
 Dissolution of the corpora tion and it's principal subsidiaries was urged in the spirited dissenting opinion. The minority declared that the anti trust law was violated in its organization; that there has been open, notorious and continued violation" of it's provi- sions and that approval of illegally born combinations would practically annul the sherman law" by judicial decree.
 Agreeing that mere size of a corpor- ation. providing it's genesis is legal, is not inhibited the minority vigor- ously disapproved the new sherman law ruling requiring judicial consider alton Of inc public interest. Such a conclusion the dissenters declared. est necessarily results in a iracti- cal nulifcation of the act itself"
 The decision was a complete victory for the steel corpora tion and its 1S0 subsidiaries. said to compose the worlds greatest industrial combina- ton with assets of more than two bil- lion dollars. It also dismissed proceed ings against score of millionaire in- dividual defendants. including Chair man F.. H. Gary of inc steel corpora - ton: Charles NJ. Schwah, John D. Rockefeller the late ]. ?. Morgan, An drew Carnegie Henry c. Prick and others Against these the govern ment had asked injunctions against Hlegale acts.
 Also the decree of dismissal marked rout fnr inc government in it's suit which was begun in 1911 in the New Jsrsr" federal court and which has been one of the longest most volum- inou. and most costly proceedings in supreme court annals The case. the records of which fiji a small room pss twice argued in the high court. in March. 1917. and again last October truce. suspending action during the war. was agreed upon in 1918.
 Although today's decree leaves the government to bring new proceedings against the corporation for specific and present practices deemed in con- ilct with the antitrust law. depart ment of justice officials declared nc thought had been given to future ac- ton. Pending study of the opinions AAAUIHNN NHFutEdl anu OlHel department officials withheld com meut.
 h it's appeal the government con tended that to sustain dismissal of it! suit by the New Jersey court woult result in licensing enormous corpor ations which fall just short of com pleie monopoly and would place tn courts stamp of approval on develop ment of industry hy combination in stead of competition.
 TO sustain it's decree that the stee concern is a good combination, tn maiority today found that it control about half of the American iron am steel trade. including mines, mills railroads. ships and ore fields. Monop oply. the opinion declares. has no been achieved. Its power over pric es. the majority also declared, is un equal to it's proportiOnate production
 Good conduct of the corporation to ward it's competitors and customer was emphasized by the majority wh held it has not oppressed competitor or dictated prices. That conduct c the steel concern parallels the oil an tobacco trusts" was denied by Ih majority. which declared the latte had been found guilty of illegal prac tices up 10 the time of their dissolu ton. while any illegalities of the stet
 
 transient in their purpose and effect and since abandoned. In this connec tion reference was made to the ia nous Cary dinners" at which ste, corporation officials met with com petitors to agree on prices.
 The government. the majority de clared, was reduced to the sole con tention that mere size. or bigness. ( the organization lis an abhorrence { the daw.'
 Unused capacity for monopoly oppression. the court held, is nt punishable. The cndrt's duty. 1t wa declared, is to punish and check an actual violations.
 In it's enunciation of the new ar plication to be given the Sherma law regarding the public interest each case, the court said:
 Tt is clear in it's denunciation monopolies and equally clear in i direction that the courts sha prevent and restrain them. but u command is necessarily submissive the conditions which may exist ar the usual powers of court O. equii to adapt it's remedies to those cond tions. We do not mean to Sd that the law is not it's own n1easui and that it can be d;sregarded, b' only that appropriate relief in eac instance is remitted to d court equity to determine, not. and let | be explicit in this. to advance a DO