Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-10-29
FLOUR AND BREAD
PROBE TO PROCEED
Trade Commission Will Go on
With Investigationof
the Bakers.

Inc feQeTdI- Tdue aNOTlnlSSloH, III
view of the opinion just rendered by
Attorney General Sargent, will pro
coed with the investigations ordered
by the Senate into the production. dis
tribption, transportation and sale of
-four and bread, into the activities of
open price" associations. and into
cooperative organizations" Chair
man Van Fleet said today.
The Attorney General having ruled
there was no connection between
charge of using propaganda to control
public opinion on the question of
municipal ownership Of power and a
charge of violation Of the antitrust
laws, that part of the Senate resolu-
ton calling for such an investiga ton
will not be made.
Probe Pressed Forward.
The investigation of the alleged
monopoIy of the production. genera
ton or transmission of electric power,
whether produced by steam, gas or
Naterpower, by the General Electric
CO. ordered by the Senate under what
is known a the Norris resolution, has
been pressed rapidly forward by tho
Federal Trade Commission, however.
and will be brought to a conclusion
and report made to the Senate as
early as possible.
The commission had begun and
made considera BILE progress in it's in
vestigation of bread and flour up To
July / The work was halted because
of a provision carried in the appro-
alton act upon which a ma jority of
the commission requested the legal
opinion of the Attorney General.
through the President, to determine
he commissions aut hority to proceed
with this investigation.
The inveStiga ton of an alleged com
bination between the American To-
baCco Co, and the Imperial Tobac eco
Co. of Great Britain TO control sales
of tobacc and of alleged boycott OF
the cooperative associations of pro
ducers by the two companies. has pro
ceeded right along. This investiga-
ton also was ordered by the Senate.
the resolution having been proposed
by Senator Ernst of Kentucky. His
resolution and that of Senator Norris
rela ting to power compa MES were
combined in one resolution and passed
by the Senate.
The commission has held M the in
estiga tons into open price asSocia
tons and co-operatives. but will now
go ahead with them.
The appropriation act. making
funds available for the Federal Trade
Commission. carries this language:
NO part of this sum shall be eX-
pended for Investigations requested
nv either house of Congress. except
those requested by concurrent reso-
luton of Congress. hut this limitation
shall not apply to Investigations and
reports in connection with alleged
violations of the antitrust acts by
any corporation
A majority of the Federal Trade
ipT cd IA p
mean that no investigation which
was economic in character, and not
an allegation OF violation of the anti
trust laws, could be made by The COM
mission with the money so appropri-
ated unless both houses of Congress
had concurred in the resolution.
Viewed as Economic.
The ma ority members of the com
mission viewed part of the bread and
flour resolution az purely economic,
and the open price" associations res
olution and that relating to cO-opera-
tiveS as in part economic, too. For
that reason, it is said. these invesiga-
lions were held up and the opinion of
the Attorney General sought.
The minority members of the com
mission - Commissioners Huston
Thompson and John +. Nugent-on
the other hand. took the opposite view
and insisted that these investigations
should he made. The opinion of the
Attorney General supports the con.
tention of the monority members. eN-
cept SO far as the investigation of the
use of propaCa nda to control public
opinion on the question of public "
private ownership and operation of
power is concerned.
The failure of the commission to
proceed with all the Investigations or
dered by the Senate until this time
has led to threats on the part of some
Senators TO urge the abolition of the
commission.