The Washington times., 1924-07-04
l. 6. oil SUITS
MAY lead To
CAMPAIGN
Other Alleged Combines Prob
ably VIII Face Federal
Prosecution

NNfNNe s~@NAN-AADA 0N5NADNp ~ (
No criminal prosecutions are an.
ticlpated by Attorney General stone
in connection with the equity suits
entered IN the Federal Court at Chi.
cago against Standard on corpor.
atoms and fifty other oil companies
throughout the United States.
The Government. IN Its epocal
suit probably the most important
Of this character since the famous
Roosevelt ''truSE busting actione''
IN 1871 seelIs abrogation Of . mum.
Der Of contracts between Standard
OH companies and smaller corpora.
tons IN fifteen States. alleged TO
restrain production through q sys-
tenn Of asserted patents" and to
increase the price Of gasoline.
Attorney General Stone feels the
anti Standard action may lead the
Government to enter the courts
against these, and other companies,
from different angles, taking the
form OF . general campaign against
combinations alleged to restrain pro-
duotion and increase prices.
Stone announced that the Wash.
tngton conference Of State attor.
neys general, to meet here soon,
may disclose evidence that win
constrain the Government to 90
into court on other cases Of some.
what similar nature.
Several State attorneys general
have requested the calling Of the
conference.
May Appear Personally.
Following the precedents Get by
former Attorney General Palmer
In the packer cases ana former
Attorney General Daugherty IN the
railroad injunction action, Attorney
General Stone hopes to find time
70 appear in person to. argue the
gasoline prosecutions, he told In.
ternational News Service.
ut IL difficult TO find time from
the executive duties Of the office to
grasp the facts Of o case Duffici.
emily TO present Il to q court"
Attorney General Stone said. How.
ever, I am seeking to find that
The The Attorney General declared
doubtsdly so to the Supreme
final adjudication. He regards the
action Of far.reachlng Importance,
vast In its ramificationa and one
which win have . bearing on the
future gasoline and oil prices OF
the United States.
The oil probes were launched
under the late President Harding.
who requested the Federal Trade
(,n~-..~s~-aA-. a. AkA nvaaSkkV,oAnt NJ
Justice to launch separate invests
cations. The Federal Trade Com
mission report was recently com.
pieted and placed in the Attorney
Generals hands. II u now under.
going study.
Date Doubtful.
Just when the action WIN be
Stone pointed to international
heard in Chicago n doubtful.
News Service that 4 II possible
the defendants will admit the facts
charged by the Government, con.
tending that the actions COM
planned Of are not violations OF the
law.
On the other hand. he said.
should the defense file an answer
challenging the facts It might be e
considerable time before trial win
The corporations named in the
suit are charged with engaging 'in
q combination and conspiracy in
restraint Of trade and commerce
among the several States and with
foreign nations in gasoline. kero-
senO ana other hydrocarbon prod
ucts. and have made, entered into
and are parties to contracts In re.
straint Of such trade ana COM
merco In violation Of the provi-
sions Of Section / Of the act OF
July 3, 1890, known as the Gher'
man Antitrust law"
Patents Attacked.
Pointing out that In 1928 the
gasoline production reached seven
ana one-half billion gallons, OF
which six and one-han billion were
consumed in the United States, the
petition goes into an elaborate de-
scription Of the latest methods OF
gasoline manufacture, namely, the
Cracking" process, which increases
the yield from q given quantity OF
crude oil over other processes.
Il is alleged that the primary
defendants" are operating under
the "supposed protection of pat,
entS" applied for or issued to them
on methods Of distilling gasoline.
Tho Government charges these
methods ''are the same processes
an those known and employed long
prior TO the application for or issu-
ance Of any Of their said patents"
Wherefore" Il was stated, 'the
petitioner alleges that the proour-
ing and treating Of said patents
and asserted patent rights by the
defendants a. valid patents and
patent rights covering and control.
ling the processes for cracking
gasoline ID but device to lend
color OF legality to the described
combination, conspiracy and mo,
nopoly." M.
The Government charges that tina
primary defendants sought Ito ox-
tort from all concerns engaged In
the manufacture Of cracked gaso.
line large sums in the guise Of
royalties and to impose on all con-
Germs 80 engaged onerous and OPP
pressive conditions designed to in.
sure to said defendants q monopo-
commerce."
It was charged that The agree
ments between the corporations pro.
vided for payment Of q heavy roy.
atty ranging from half q cent to
Q cent and q quarter Der gallon on
gasoline produced by the cracking
process TOR domestic consumption.
This was alleged TO have increased
the gasoline price
Injunction Sought.