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Show WILL TRY GOAL CASE on ini Federal Judge Sustains Demurrer De-murrer to First Count in Indictment. OFFENSE IS INCLUDED IX SECOND CLAUSE Conspiracy to Restrain Trade Alleged in Violation of Sherman Law.- The case of the United Slates against tho Union Pacific Coal company, in which the company is charged with having hav-ing combined with certain other corporations corpo-rations and individuals lo control ( the retail price of coal in Salt Lake City, will be trind under the second count in the indictment found by the Federal grand .jurv hern in November, 1007. which charges that the combination was in violation ot the provisions of the Sherman anti trust law. ThO indictment brought against the companv bv the grand jury contained two counts." The first declared that the coal company, with the Union Pacific and Oregon Short Line railroads and .Tames M. Moore and 32. Buckingham, then general superintendent of the Oregon Short Lino, had entered into a general conspiracy' to restrain trade and form an unlawful monopoly, in violation viola-tion of an net of Congress prohibiting such combinations. The second count in tho indictment charged that the same combination between tho parties named above had been fonnod in violation of tho Sherman anti-trust law. Tho coal 'company demurred lo both counts of the indictment, alleging that tho counts were not substantiated in law nor by tho evidence introduced beforo be-foro tho grand jury which returned tho indictment. Monday' Judge Marshall sustained tho demurrer to the first count and overruled over-ruled the demurrer to tho second count. The demurrer to tho first count was sustained on the ground that the offense charged against the coal company, that of a general conspiracy to restrain re-strain trade, was embodied in the charge named in the second count, namely, that the combination was in violation of the Sherman anti-trust law. Judge Marshall held that the first count was unnecessary, therefore, and ruled it out. The first investigation in tho alleged monopoly existing bctweon the Union T'ncille Coal eompnnv and the Union Pacific Pa-cific and Oregon Short Line railroad companies, whereby it is charged retail coal prices were fixed and regulated arbitrarily in Salt Take, was held here in September, 190G. when the Interstate I Commerce commission hold a heariug on i the matter and listened to tho story told by David J. Sharp, formerly a coal dealer hero in this city. Sharp testified that ho had advertised coal at a lower retail prico than other dealers woro selling sell-ing it for in Salt Lako. and that thereafter there-after the Union Pacific Coal company refused to sell him coal, and the Union Pacific and Oregon Short Lino roads aided and abetted the eoal company in their action. Sharp declares he was driven out of business. The affair wns turned over to the United States courts in November, P.I07, nnd an indictment returned against I he coal company and the railroad companies. |