South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-04-27
COAL TRUST
IS DISSOLVED
BY U.s. COURT
Supreme Court Sustains Gov
ernment's Charges Against
Reading Company.
BY Associated Press

By Associated Press:
WASHINGTON, April 26.-An-
nouncing its decision in a part of the
long pending anthracite coal trust
cases Monday, the supreme court in
"a TO opinion sustained a majority
of the governments charges of IL
legal combination against the Read
ing company. a Pennsylvania hold
ing corporation, and certain of its
railroad and coal subsidiaries and
ordered their dissolution. CHIEF
Justice White and Associate Holmes
and Vandevanter dissented while
Justices McReynOlds and Brandeis
took no part IN the decision.
No Copy Available.
No copy of the majority opinion
was available as Justice Clarke was
rendering il. Associated with the
Reading companies as defendants
were the Lehigh and Wilkes Barre
Coal company and the Lehigh Coal
and Navigation company and the
constant recurrence of the words
"Lehigh company" throughout the
Reading caused the opinion TO exist
that the sO-Called Lehigh case which
actually refers TO the Lehigh valley
railroad company and which was ar
gUed last fall with the Reading case
was being decided also. Dispatches
saying the government had also won
its case against the Lehigh Valley
Railroad company were sent out
and &c was not until almost an hour
later when copies of Justice Clarke's
opinion were made available that
il was found that the court had act
ed on the Reading case alone. The
court concluded announcing de
cision without reaching the Lehigh
Valley railroad case.
Reverse DEGREES.
The majority opinion held the
holding cOmIany guilty OF violation
of the Sherman antitrust act and
reversed federal court DEGREES rem
dered in Philadelphia in 1915 refus
ing TO sustain the governments
charges of monopoly. but directing
the separation of the Central Rail
road Of New Jersey from its subsi-
diary coal company, the Lehigh and
Wikes-Barre Coal company. Disso-
luton was ordered by the supreme
court of the Reading company, the
Philadelphia and Reading Railway
company. the Philadelphia and
Reading Coal and Iron company,
the Central railroad Of New Jersey
and the Lehigh and Wilkes-Ba
Coal company, maintained through
the holding corporation, so that
they would be entirely Independent
of each other. Disposition Of the
stock and bonds Of the various COM
panies held by the Reading COM
pany also was directed.
Sustain Lower Court.
The court sustained, however. the
lower court DEGREES absOlving the
Lehigh Coal and Navigation COM
pany the Lehigh and New England
Railroad company and the Lehigh
and Hudson River Railway company
on charges as to restrictive cove
nantS in mining leases with respect
TO the shipping of coal and refusing
TO order the dissertation Of the Phii-
adelphia and Reading Coal and Iron
company and the Lehigh and
Wnkes-Barre Coal company. main
tanned through the holding COM
panv
Charges against the directors of
the holding company, including the
late George +. Baer and Henry G.
F'rick as well as George F. Baker.
Henry A. Dupont, Daniel Willard,
Henry p. Mexican and Samuel Dick
son. who were also named as de-
PENDANTS. were dismissed.
IniunCtions Permanent.
Similar action was taken in re-
gard 70 the Wilmington and North
ern Railroad company. InjunctiOns
restraining enforcement Of the
provisions inserted by the Reading
and Wilkes-Barre Coal company in
coal leases requiring the lessee to
CONTINUED ON PAGE FOUR.)