Show GREAT ANTITRUST ANTI TRUST VICTORY FOR ROOSEVELT I 1 government WINS IN MERGER CASES I 1 supreme court declares combination of northern pacific and great northern was for the purpose of destroying competition power of congress over interstate commerce complete 0 FOUR DISSENTED washington march 14 tho merger decision was concurred in by justices brown brewer me i kenna and day while the chief justice and justices white peck am and holmes dissented jus alce brewer in concurring did so for different reasons than those of the majority however washington alarca 14 the merger case has attracted greater attention than any other suit before the court since the first insular cases were decided and has been regarded by bench and bar as eagal in importance with those cases and with the income tax case it was argued in december last tor two days and attracted general attention at that it did previously when the decision was rendered by the circuit court for the district of minnesota the action was brought in the circuit court and by the law of february 11 1903 which was for the purpose ot the case and was heard by the four circuit court judges of the clr witt they ln a states and opposed to the of the railroad companies the suit was instituted by the united states against the northern se washington march H the opinion of the supreme court of the united states in the case ot the northern securities company vs the great northern was hand cd down today and was in favor of the government tho opinion was read by justice harlan the opinion ot the circuit court for the district of minnesota was af firmed the effect Is to sustain the contention that the antitrust anti trust law applies to railroad combinations of the character in question justice harlan said that in the merger of the two roads the stockholders disappeared and re appeared reappeared in the securities company the two thus becoming practically consolidated in a holding company the prin capal object being to pro vent competition no scheme or device could certainly moro effectively come within the prohibition of the antitrust anti trust law j and bo within the meaning ot the word trust company and the two railroad companies and leaden g trefor he ot dl the merger of the two roads which the united states declared had been created by the creation of a holding com HILL DECLINES TO TALK now york march 14 J J hill president of the northern securities company received news of the decision at the flee in this city mr hill declines to discuss the matter except to say there is nothing to be said at this time the properties of the northern securities company are still there they are as good as over pany the securities company the consolidation was claimed to be in violation of the sherman antitrust anti trust law it was claimed on behalf of tha government that this consolidation was in effect a pool created to promote tha interests not of one system at the expenses of the other but of both at the expense of the public the railroads claimed that the transfer of tho stock of the two companies to the securities company was lu the nature of a sale perfectly legi limata the contentions of tho securities company wera reviewed by justice harlan who twelve tl attention he the ions involving tho trust question saying that from them it Is to be gathered I 1 that all contracts in restraint of trade prohibited by the sherman law and that congress baa the power to es cablish such relations as are laid down in that law congress bad power to en act the statute in our judgment said justice harlan the evidence fully sustains tho material allegations of tho bill and shows a violation of tho act of congress in so tar as it declares illegal every combination or conspiracy in restraint of commerce among the several beatea and with foreign nations and forbids attempts to monopolize such commerce laying aside the many things of a moral character and summarizing the principal facts it is indisputable upon this record that under the leadership of the defendants hill and morgan tho stockholders of the great northern and northern pa railway corporations having competing and substantially parallel lines from the great lakes and the mississippi river to the pacific ocean at puget sound combined and conceived the scheme of organizing a corporation under the laws of new jersey which should consist of stock of the constituent companies continuing justice harlan said that this combination Is within the meaning of tho act trust a but Is a combination in restraint of interstate and of international commerce and that is enough to bring the condemnation dem nation of the fact he held that it elich were not destroyed all the advantage ti 0 y come to the public under the operation ot the laws nr aa between the great northern and northern pacific rall gouid be lost the arts co mmerle of the immense ter pi ft m the cro part of tho unit aal V between le tween le apat lakes abc d would ue at Q the mercy ot a single corpora the I zed in a state distant from the territory on points made by the securities harlan saad the con entson at the law is interference with the rights ot the individual states oy which the companies are incorporated was not well founded in such cases he said the authority ot congress as supreme he also declared it to be unnecessary to determine the right ot owners of railroad stock to sell the property nor was it true that tho right 0 the securities to own and hold railroads is the only question involved such contentions are wide of the mark mere men 0 straw AU that the government complains ot Is the existence of a corporation to repress commerce and Is not concerned with the other points justice harlan said that in this day there should be no doubt ot the power ot congress to control interstate commerce although means might I 1 be resorted to for that purpose all the prior trust cabes were in support of that contention wh ether free and unrestrained combination was wise he said was an economic question with which the court need not concern itself he asserted the power of congress over interstate ter state commerce to be as complete as the power 0 a detate over domestic commerce coming to the plea of the railroads that the antitrust anti trust laws should be declared unconstitutional he said the court could not see its wa v to that end if he went on the securities companas comp anys contentions are sound why may not all the railroads of the united states enter into a combination and by the device of a holding company corporation control rates throughout the country justice harlan also took occasion to say that there had been nothing in the securities companas comp anys certificates 0 incorporation to indicate its purpose to destroy commerce and he therefore exonerated the state of new jersey from any charge ot such knowledge iu advance it might truo that a federal court held no power to dissolve a states but this circum stance could not be an indication of powerlessness to enforce the law than which no is stronger no device could suffice to prevent this enforcement ottlie national statutes the courts bad indeed x held to the supremacy ot the national davs in caso of conflict between laws and the laws of the states so long as congress continos conti nod itself to its prescribed functions he said there could be no danger at any rate the error if any was with congress and it was for congress to supply the remedy and not for the courts justice harlan declared that the only object of the merger was to prevent competition and he ald that it no one else knew this to be the case J rier pont morgan one of ho defendants knew that to have been the case extracts from morgans testimony were quoted iu support of this statement the decree ot abe circuit court he said could not havo been of smaller scope and it had in IK way exceeded its authority the law must not be narrowly construed but reasonably construed the defendants could not complain of the finding of the circuit court and justice harlan in conclusion announced the confirmation of that falon saying the judgment of this court is that the decree below of the circuit court be and hereby Is with liberty to the circuit court to proceed in the execution of the decree as the circumstances may require the decision was concurred in by Just icea brown brewer mckenna and day while the chief justice and justices white peckham and holmes dissented justice harlan was followed by justice brewer who while concurring in the judgment did not accept all of the language of the opinion justice holmes read the the antitrust anti trust lawaan law aaa criminal and declared that thora nothing in it to andl ct flat it had been enacted merely tor the control of large corporations as Is generally contended indeed tho law had not been understood as applying to railroads until so construed by the supreme court the act he contended applies only to contracts and combinations in restraint of trade and makes no reference to competition logically construed holmead said decision should be followed by the criminal prosecution of the parties at interest in this case speaking of the general impression that the sherman daiy applies only to large corporations abo justice bald that athla impression was breathed from every pore of alie fatute ta tute but that its language did not bear out the conclusion he thought athla inference due to the size of railroad corporations ma took the position stat there bad been no attempt to monopolize in athla combination of the rall roada and said that there could be no more eions to the purchase of the stock w the northern pacino a the ora northern roads by the securities company than it bought by mr morgan himself referring to abo point of responsibility mr holmes bald 1 I do not expect to hear it maintained that mr morgan could bo benti to prison for buying aa baaree w he liked of the great northern waa northern pacific even it be thoat boh at the we alroe nd got sw tihan halt abo stock 0 al 01 tveite also read a dissenting pinion taking up especially tho power 01 congress to control commerce beginning with an argument in support oi dissenting opinions he the point involved he referred to its importance and called attention to the fact that only four members of tho urt one loss than a majority had united in the opinion of tho court he then said that such plea as are laid down in ahat opinion are destructive of every principle upon which organized society depends washington march 14 president roosevelt received the news of the merger decision from the associated press he expressed hla satisfaction that the court had sustained the contentions tent ions of the government later be will express his personal congratulations to the attorney general st paul march 14 governor vansant cheri told of the merger decision was highly elated he said 1 I am much gratified with the result of the decision tor in my opinion the decision means more to the people ot our country than any event since the civil war it will for all time prevent the formation of illegal trusts and unlawful combinations new york march 14 at the office of J P morgan co no expression regarding the merger decision could be obtained col W P clough fourth alce dent director and general counsel of the securities company who is alleged to have taken an active part in drawing its charter was in washington today the stock market was not generally affected by the decision the general list which made some improvement before noon sold ott for the most part when news of the decision |