The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1920-03-02
SUPREME COURT
WI Sa6HIn SOO' n
REFUSES TO D|SSOLv We
STEEL CORPORATION
DECISION BY FOUR
OF SEVEN JUSTICES
Decree Brands the u. S. Steel
As a Good Cor
poratlon

WASHINGTON. March In four
In thre" decision today tho supreme
court refused 10 dissolve tho United
States Steel corporation and Its nu'
mcrouS SuhsIdia rieS comprising The so,
called steel trust
Tho governments long fought suit for
dissolution Of the iron and steel trade
combination for alleged Eiol:'tnn nt INC
Sherman antitrust law was dismissed.
with nhsolution for ih" corporations
from all existing charges.
Placing the high courts 20. X. ON
The steel corporation wcrc Chtrf Justice
White and Associate Justices Mckenna.
who announced tho majority opinion.
Holmes and Vandevantcr.
Justice Day gave the dissenting optn-
ion. which was joined by Justices tht-
ncy and Clarke: Justices McRcynoiV
and Rrandcis took no part. the former
having been attorney Ccn"r;'f dur'nS tn
litigation and the latter having express
cd opinions regarding ii before appoint
mcnt To the bench.
good" Combination. 49,
Primarily tho deere" officially brands
the steel corporation rs good COM
hinatiOn. with it's legality established.
Further. tho court held that mere size.
size higneSS or prcp"nd"rancc IN inous-
alone sufficient cause for their dissolu-
ton.
The court also gave a new and far
reaching judicial Interpretation or APP
/
10 it's famous rule Of reason In the,
STANDARD OH and Tobacco trust cases,
ny declaring that public interest must
! be considered in applying IN; law.
Tho public interest. II was held. Touiu
not b. served and milht he injured ~
disOlving tho steel concern.
The Minority View.
Dissolution of The corporation and y:
principal subsidiaries was urScd'i thS
spirited dissenting opinion. the minor
ily declared that The antitrust law ~aS
: violated in it's organization. that there
has been open. notorious and continued
Nolition "of its provisions and that ap-
proval Of illcgally-born combinations
would practically annul thc Sherman
law by judicial decree.
Agreeing that mere size OF corpora
, ton. providing it's genesis is legal. "
rot inhibited. tho minority vigorously
disapprovcd ne new Sherman law rul.
Ing requiring judicial consideration 81
the public interest Such conclusioh,
the disscntcrs declared. necessarily rer
suits in PRACTICAL notification OF iha
act itself"
Tho decision was complete victory
for the steel corporation and It's !aa
subsidiaries. said to compose ths
worlds grcatCnt Industrial comb'n2tton
with nsscsrs OF more than two billion
dollars. 1t also dismissed proceedings
against score Of millionaire indlfdu-
nj defendants, including Chairman G- IL
; Gary. OF the steel corporation, Shar,sn
, NJ Schwab, John D. Rockefeller. the
! inic ]. Pierpont Morgan and Andrew
carnccic. Henry c. Frick. nnd others.
! Acrinst these tho government had asked
| iniunCtions against Illegal ACTS
Government Routed
Also tho decree Of dismissal marked
utter rout tcr the government IN its
suit. which WIS begun In 1911. In tas
New Jersey federal court and which
has bccn ono ~ tho longest. most vol
uminous and most costly proceedings
in supr,n," Z" rrt annals. The case lh~
records uf 'i'h MI Il small room, was
iyy.rc ;r.-r,.' = ,hc high court, in March.
I017 md g.. ! ucubcr lst A truce, SUE
rcuding :,t! u during the war, was
:'gr"rd ~ N l?is.
Although l,:iny'= & 'rce leaves ths
.o,.,r",' ,'rt free to hr.rc new proceed
f.,,,u. a,-nir Il,c corp, ration for specific
ma rrcs-"t rroc'icrs deemed In con.
.ii,'t win tn "r'i-tru:'t law. department
,r iusiirc ofiiri"ls declared no thoueh'
I'D boon :iyc0 tn future action. fcnd.
oro, TaI~rr nd other department Of
Gcials Withheld comment.
The Opinion
The doc Ions Of Justice Kenna's
opinion were: A,,
We are umah'c u sec That the pubic
interest wIllG br served by yieinin2 10
The contention or the government re-
sprctn the dissolution Of The company
or The separation from il OF some or its
I subsidiaries: and VIC do 500 in con-
, trarv conclusion n risk Cf injury TO the
mihiir interest including a material dis
| turhance thrr" of md !; may be SER
ious drtr!mcnt 10 tho foreign trndc and.
: in submission to the policy ot the law
ard its fortifyInr prohibitions the pub
lice interest is OF paramount regard.
Regarding tn" corporal tton.S practices
Justice McKcnna quoted from lower
court dlcrrcs which. he 50 a. tho ma
jor!ty OF the high court endorses as
follows:
II resc rtnd 10 mono ~ The hTutalities
or tyranncs that n" cases illustrative
(Continued on Page Eleven.)