The Glasgow courier. [volume] (Glasgow, Mont.) 1913-current, 1920-01-02
THE Big five
IS ENjOIVED
Meat Packers Must Confine
Themselves to Meat and Pro-
visions Business Only.
COMBINATION IS DISSOLVED
Must Dispose of Holdings in .SStccL
Yards, Cold Storage Warehouse
and Other Interests Not Asat-
ed to Packing Business

The governments antitrust suit
against the great meat packers. be-
gun at President Wilson's direction
last summer as part of the fight on
the high cost of living, has beel. com
promised under an agreement by which
the packers will confine themselves
hereafter to the meat and provision
business. q
An injunction decree to which the
packers have acceded will be entered
in the federal courts to make the
agreement binding. Under it's terms
the "big five'-Swift. Armour, Nor
ris, Wilson and Cudahy-have agreed:
To sell under supervision of the
United States district court, prefer
ably to the livestock producers and
the public, all holdings in public stock
yards.
To sell, under the same supervision
and in like manner, all their interests
in stockyard railroads and terminals.
To sell, under the same supervision
and in like manner, all their interests
in market newspapers; dispose of their
interest in public cold storage ware
houses except as necessary for their
w meat products.
To forever dis-associate themselves
with the retail meat business.
To forever >dis-associate themselves
with all unrelated %lines," including
wholesale groceries; fresh, canned,
dried or salt fish; fresh, dried, evap-
grated or canned fruits; confection-
cries, syrups, soda water fountain
supplies, etc, m~olasseS, heney, jams,
jellies and preserves, ices, sauces, rel
ishes, etc., coffee, tea, chocolate, CO.
Goa, nuts, flour, sugar, rice and GER
calls with an exception to be noted)
bread, waters, crackers, biscuits, spa
ghetti, vermicelli, macaroni, cigars,
china, furniture, etc.
To forever abandon the use of
branch houses, route cars and auto
trucks, comprising their distribution
system, for any other than their own
meat and dairy products.
To perpetually submit to the juris.
diction of the United States district
cours under an injunction %forbidding
all the defendants from direct or in
directly maintaining any combination
or conspiracy with each other or any
other person or persons or monopoliz-
ing or attempting to monopolize any
food products in the United States, or
indulge in any unfair practice. The
decree further provided the jurisdic-
ton is perpetually retained by the
courts for the purpose of taking such
other action, or adding at the foot
Of the decree such other relief, if any,
that may become necessary or appro-
pirate for the carrying out and en-
forcement of the decree.
Two years are given to comply
with the decree, which affects 81 cor
porations and 48 individuals.
"In general" said Attorney Gener-
al Palmer's official announcement,
"this decree prevents the defendants
from exercising any further control
over the marketing of livestock. 1t
forever prevents them from any con-
troll owe the retailing of meat prod
ucts. It eliminates them from the
field of meat substitutes, with the
exception of eggs, butter, poultry and
cheese, which are left for future con-
sideration and therefore the price of
meat is within the control of the
people themselves. 1t places the con-
duct of these great aggregations of
Immediately under the eye of
the federal court with reference to
their business practices.
"But, greater than all, it establishes
the principle that no group of men,
matter how powerful, can ever at
to control the food table of the
American people or any one of the
necessities or component parts of it
"The department of justice, having
in mind the necessities and interests
of the people in this critical recon
period, feels that by insist
ing upon this surrender on the part of
the packing interests it has accomp-
lished more for the American people
than could have been hoped for as the
result of a long drawn out legal bat
tle."