Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1944-01-02

psTial Chemical Industries of Great
Britain, Montecanti of Italy and Koku-
san IlcTyo Keibushiki Kaisha OF Japan.
The products involved were titanium
c-ntpoundc, which are essential to the
war effort bscarse they are used in the
manufacture of paints, glass and rub
Der, d1splacing other materials such as
lithopone and white lead Titanium it.
self is the ninth most abundant element
found on the earth's surface.
Three Main Accusations.
The indictment charged the American
companies and the alleged co-conspira.
tors with:
l. Dividing up the world into exclusive.
noncompetitive areas
O. SURPRISING competition and OBJ.
tanning monopolistic control of the in
du5sry in the United States through the
pcciing of patents.
.. lmpo-lng a system of restrictive
production on the few American manu-.
facturers permitted to continue in busi-
ness and subjecting them to the control
of the cartel.
Lead and l. G. Farben jointly owned
Titangesellschaft, which was given ex-
elusive rights in Central and Eastern
Europe and the Far East. South
America was open territory for Titan
gesellschaft, National Lead and Du Point.
but, according to the Department of,
Justice announcement, the parties,
agreed not to compete in this market
and assigned to each other certain
customers"
The announcement continued:
AT the outbreak of the present war
IltangeSellschaft was unable to supply
the South American market, and Ma.
tional Lead agreed to supply Titan.
gellschaft's customers and pay to the
German company the profits received
from sales made to such customers,
This particular arrangement was can
celed when the United States entered
the war"
In many of the civil suits consent de.
crees have been obtained by the anti,
trust division. In some of the larger
indictments, proceedings have been
postponed at the written request of the
Secretaries of War and the Navy be.
cause they would take high company
officials away from essential war work.
Everything to Be Open.
For the postwar period, it is signin-
can't that several of the consent DEGREES
stipulate that if any of the defendants
contemplate joining with foreign COM
panies they must notify the antitrust
division OF all current transactions.
This indicates that If it is necessary to
relax the antitrust laws to enable
| Amerlcan-Brit postwar economic CO.
operation, everything will be public and
above board
Lord MCGOWAN, speaking at the
youngstown dinner, supported the cartel
system and advocated regulated pro-
auction and prices as means of end
ing unrestricted competition. In the
House OF Lords he has proposed that all
| private international trade agreements
| should be registered with the govern
ment.
At least one important American
businessman is willing to go further
than Lord MCGOWAN. At a meeting in
September with Vice President Henry A.
| wallace and Berge, r. w. Gallagher.
| president OF Standard Oil of New JERSEY.
who had claimed that Wallace had been
lnadequately informed about Standards
participation in cartels, outlined his
company's views about international
| agreements.
Out OF this conference came an in.
formal statement by Gallagher, which
Berge says is not far from the Govern
ments position. Speaking for his com.
pany, Gallagher listed the following
viewpoints:
i. That the Standard Oil Co. was in
favor OF having all agreements between
American and foreign companies filed
and registered with an appropriats
Government agency.
2. That as far as their own connanv
was concerned they would pursue a
policy of unrestricted licensing of patent.
at reasonable royalties.
3. That cartels which limit produc.
ton, fix prices, divide territory ana
limit chronological development should
De vigorously prosecuted because thew
are inconsistent with our principles Of
free enterprise.
4. That their own patents on butvl
rubber, both now and at the conclusion
OF the war, should be open to all those
who are interested, royalty free until
after the war and al reasonable ROYALTY
thereafter; that thev do not believe that
enc company should control such. an
important development as butyl and Mat
other companies should be encouraged
to enter the field"
MCGOWAN Wants Price Fixinx.
Britishers like Lord MCGOWAN, how
ever. want limitation of production and
price fixing, while many Americans be-
heve that registered cartels, without
prevention of these practices, would
merely tend to make cartels official.
In his speech to the London dinner,
Johnston declared that American public
opinion was overwhelmingly opposed to
private artificial monopolies.
Virtually alone among the worlds
great nations" he said, "the United
States has legislated emphatically
against artificial monopoly and artificial
trade practices. Our laws utterly forbid
such domestic devices as the dividing Of
markets, the ALLEGATION Of outputs and
the fixing of prices by trade groups.
mo American, therefore, can inteln-
gently and sincerely promise you CO.