Evening star., 1938-08-14
C.. III. A.
fContinued From First Page,)

4 clear that any further practices Of
This kind will be prosecuted"
Referring to the departments state
n1ent Of August ! threatening grand
fury investigation Of organized medi-
cine, Mr.. Arnold said:
THE very purpose Of Our public
statement was to serve as a warning
Of that prosecution policy.
"The purpose Of a criminal proceed
ing, Of course. Is coercive in the sense
that it is frankly intended to stop
violations Of law. This does not mean,
however. that the department will
coerce the submission Of consent de-
erees. The details Of our consent
decree policy have been stated in full
IN an announcement dated May l8,
% It is unnecessary to repeat them
here.
Is Society Above the Law?
I regret that the Medical Society
insists that 1t Is not amenable to the
same laws which prevent coercion re-
straining competition in the furnish
ing OF oLller services.
Mr.. Hoover, when asked for COM
ment on the latest developments, said
he was surprised not to have received
his letter from the Justice Department
prior to its publication, and that he
would have nothing to say until he
had studied the letter. He has been
planning to leave Washington today
tor the West, to return in September
Personal negotiations between the
Justice Department and the Medical
Society began July 25. the society's
letter explained, when Allen E. Hart
assistant to Mr. Arnold. and the ply
sicians' counsel conferred at the de-
partment.
In the course of our discussion with
Mr.. Hart the attorneys said, we
stated that while we were strongly OF
the opinion that the Medical Society
was not subject to the antitrust laws
nevertheless, we realized that if We
did not voluntarily give you access tc
the books and records that you could
1nAugurate grand jury proceeding
and by process Of the court compe,
the production Of the books and
records. We stated to Mr.. Hart that
the Medical Society had nothing to
conceal, and had no desire TO obstruct
any investigation that you might be
entitled under the law to make"
Conference Reviewed.
AS result OF this conference. the
letter explained. the books were opened
to an F. B. I. investigator. and we
understand" it continued, that from
day to day the investigator assigned
to the job has been engaged in examin-
ing the books, records and cor
respondence Of the Medical Society. !"
Following the statement concerning
coercion to which Mr.. Arnold took
exception, the physicians counsel went
ahead to say that the Assistant At
torney General in the conference Au-
gust 2 had stated your policy in this
teeard at some length, and emphasized
the fact that what you were then
saying to us was practically the same
Is had been stated by you in a press
release on consent DEGREES which
had been given out on May 1s.
I'VE endeavored to have you advise
as just what you expected of the
Medical Society. In reply to this, you
stated that you had many ideas in the
back OF your head, but you did not
feel that you could state those ideas
10 us, for the reason that you felt that
II any suggestion as to any plan should
be made. that it should come from the
= Medical Society,""
Asked for Plans,
j. Physicians counsel said they then
aaked Mr.. Arnold if any plan that
might be suggested would have any
particular relation to the three points
emphasized in the departments state
faent August concerning the society's
alleged opposition to G. H. A.
sYou stated" continued the attor-
neys,> that any plan that might be
submitted should not be confined to
the points mentioned in your press