Seward seaport record. (Seward, Alaska) 1948-195?, 1950-06-27

the charges brought against I
~ June 1850 the Antitrust the u S. Attorney
Generals Office filed civil injunction suit in Anchorage against
the Alaska Steamship Company myself President, Mr. R. c.
Anderson Executive Vice President Mr. H. N Peterson General
Traffic Manager and Mr. J. D. Nelson and Mr. Walter Manahan
Assistant Traffic Managers At the same time the Antitrust LAWYERS
procured criminal indictment against apparently designed
two (a) bolster up their civil suit and b)
intimdate
The criminal indictment and civil complaint except
with respect the penalties demanded The criminal indct
asks that be declared criminals and the civil complaint
seeks compress into legal which would
paalyze but leave competitors free operate as it, and
when they please
The suit, If successful could the end Of water
transportation all the Territory by private enterprise
is the step toward socialized government operation of
ship service to the Territory the commercial operation of the
and operated NORTH STAR being the
an unwarraned attack and simply another
strand in the being prepared by elements
ment to hang so-called big business
The Antitrust policy makers have employed the same sly
technique against that they have used against other and
much larger business enterprises While certain local Alaska
businessmen also be puished by criminal indictments
only Alaska Steamship Company has been singled for exnc
ton by civil Injunction
Our operations practices and subject rigid
regulation under the Federal Shipping Acts These Acts
clear and definite and provide heavy penalties upon proof of
proper business practices On the other hand the present
laws ceancut body rules they distorted into
weller which sharp LAWYERS can find excuses
for charging almost anyone with almost anything pur
pose hand was frankly told the Antitrust lawyers
high position that violation of the Antitrust laws at the
time is anything that their staff dream up and
induce the courts to sustain.
Let me proceed with brief examination of this
bulky Indictment 1t reveals the familiar pat
tern Of Antitrust prosecutions. Lacking evil
dence Of cIearcut violations Of the law, multitude .,
OF charges are thrown at Us in hope that
more Of them will stick. #<
The indictments and complaints predicated on some
the Alaska Steamship Company has undertaken furnish
to all and in the Territory only the Alaska Steam
ship Company has offered full line of shipping svice the
Alaska Steamship Company has been able offer passenger
ce only the Alaska Steamship Company has provided facilities
for carrying pehabe and refrigerated cargo Apparently be-
have offered full line of freight and passenger sece-because
have done all these bad things branded criminals
and our service is to be '.hamstrung' by injunction.
1t charged that Mr. Anderson Mr. Peterson Mr. Mel
Mr.. Manahan and have consped" acquire ''vir-
tua monopoly of the business of transporting persons
modtes by for hire the Alaska Trade by
operations of Northand Transportation Company and Alaska
Steamship Company. The plain facts
At the termination of the 1913 strike both Norhland
and Alaska Transportation Company compelled to cease
carrier operations because of the heavy operating
being sustained attempting Southeastern Alaska under
existing rate levels and by the payment of full charter hire
ALAS kA STEAM
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