The daily pioneer. [volume], December 16, 1903, Image 1

About The daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Beltrami Co., Minn.) 1903-1904

Image provided by: Minnesota Historical Society; Saint Paul, MN

                
VOLUME 1. NUMBER 202.
ARGUMENTS ARE ENDED
NORTHERN SECURITIES CASE UF
TO THE UNITED STATES SU-
PREME COURT.
ATTORNEY GENERAL KNOX SPEAKS
ASSERTS THE MERGER IS A MO-
NOPOLY AN CLEARLY CON-
TRARY TO LAW.
Washington, Dec. 16.The argument
in the Northern Securities case was
resumed in the United States su
preme court during the morning and
again the courtroom was crowded by
attorneys and others interested in the
case. Attorney General Knox was
recognized almost immediately aftei
the court came in and resumed his
argument at the point at which he left
off when court adjourned the previous
day. lie declared that by the union ot
the Northern Pacific and Great North
ern by means of the Northern Securi
ties company two competing interstate
railroads have been brought into such
relations that their independence as
competitive factors in interstate com
merce is destroyed,
merce is destroyed. Continuing Mr.
Knox said:
"The testimony shows conclusively,
I think, that as a matter of fact and
law the thing which these gentlemen
did was to create a combination in the
form of trust, the form specifically
prohibited by the act of congress, if
It restrained interstate commerce
and, also, that the Northern Securities
company was formed for the purpose
of taking over the control of the Great
Northern and Northern Pacific rail
roads and actually took over that con
trol, and with that control absolute
power over both roads, the thing
which your honors have said consti
tutes such restraint under circum
stances substantially the same as
those of this case.
*m wm
*F
ksa
there's & world of satisfaction in the
Smoking
Jackets House
Coats
Lounging
Robes
Not High-Priced Goods, for Gift
Purposes Only, but Popular Novelties.
in Popular Fabrics, at Popular
Pricesto supply the waoits
of the every-day ma who
appreciates House Comfort.
Let us show you the lines
you'll be willing to pay more
than we ask.
Q'Leary & Rowser
WMBNSBS
Violates Law by Ingenious Plan.
"But the law likewise prohibits com
binations otherwise formed. That is
to say, the law distinctly and plainly
provides that its policy shall never be
defeated by the exercise of any in
genuity in the devising of forms. The
object of the law once clearly deter
mined all difficulty ceases if it is es
tablished "that the object is defeaUd
through contracts, combinations in
the form of trust or otherwise, or by
conspiracies."
Mr. Knox then discussed the end
accomplished by the merger of the
railroad interests, saying:
"The device resorted to in this case,
if sustained, defeats the policy of the
law, as it accomplishes all and more
in the way of effectual destruction of
competition than was accomplished
in the Transmissouri and Joint Traffic
cases, declared illegal."
Mr. Knox also declared that the
power to suppress competition has
been exercised and he declared that
Messrs. Morgan and Hill had the
power to suppress competition between
these two roads when they held the
control of the majority of the stock
of the two. He also asserted that they
executed that power and actually sup
pressed and destroyed competition be
tween them the moment they parted
with the legal title to their segregated
holdings and vested them in the North
ern Securities company, with the
power In that company, as its charter
specifies, "to exercise all the rights of
ownership, including the right to vote
thereon."
This, he contended, actually de
stroyed competition between the two
roads.
Knox Concludes His Argument.
Mr. Knox summed up as follows:
"That the end accomplished is to
bring under one control the Northern
Pacific and Great Northern railroads
in such a way as to destroy competi
tion between them and to create a
monopoly of transportation in the sec
tion traversed by them.
"That this end was the deliberate
purpose of the parties defendant, who
conceived and carried out the com
bination.
"That such a combination is in re
straint of trade, as your honors have
repeatedly decided, and therefore vio
lates the act of congress.
"I have not the slightest doubt
about it that this particular manifes
tation of the tendency to combine has
no economic merits. It is bad enough
to bring the entire traffic, facilities in
(jym-^gsgS
BEMIDJI. MINNESOTA.
up*
In selecting Christmas Presents it is well to look to the intrinsic value of the article
chosensomething that will please the eye and at the same time give service to the
recipient make the ideal presentthe kind that you will b^ remembered by. Today we
call your attention to three desirable Christmas Gifts.
FOR WINTER LEISURE 1
an important section 01 uie cuuuuj
under monopolistic control, but when
to the power to fix charges for trans
portation you add the creation of
scores of millions of fiat stock upon
which those charges are expected to
pay dividends you impose an unjusti
fiable burden upon the people and ex
act too high a price for a successful
evasion of the law.
"While it may be true that the re
capitalization of these companies was
based upon existing market values for
their stock, yet existing market values
rested at that time upon total forget
fulness of the fact that the progress
of material prosperity is not continu
ous and that those values were lifted
upon the wings of an optimism that
had converted into stock and stock
values all the prosperity in sight, as
well as all hopes and expectations of
many future years."
Young Speaks for Defendants.
Mr. Knox was followed by George.
B. Young on behalf of the Securities
company. He began by saying that
his clients do not seek in any way to
limit the authority of congress over
interstate commerce, nor was the Se
curities company seeking in any way
to evade the law. But it was not, he
said, necessary to stretch a law cover
ing interstate commerce to make it
cover something that is not interstate
commerce.
"We are not dealing here with com
merce or the operations of railroads
at all," he said, "but we are dealing
with the question of property."
He referred to previous cases in the
supreme our under the anti-trust
law and said that congress had not
defined th restraint of trade and that
it had been necessary for the court to
make its own definitions. In the Joint
Traffic cases the roads dealt with were
competing in character, but suppose
they had not been competitors and
they had agreed to reduce rates? That
would be a contract in the restraint
of trade, for the gist of a contract is
found in the obligation that it lays
upon the parties to it.
All contracts in restraint of trade
are, Mr. Young said, largely executory
and he contended that the true view of
the law must be in the same line as
that of conspiracies. There might be
power to affect commerce, but to come
within the conviction of the law the
power must be exercised.
Mr. Young concluded at 3:15 p. m.
and the case was submits t **r
court.
Smokin
Jackets
We have a nice assortment
of these coats in popular
styles at
$5.00
.50
A N
$7.50
EA CH
Carpet_Sweepers
Bissell's Cyco Standard and Excelsior at from
$2.00
O
$3.00
Sewing ^jgg^-
Machines "&
New Home $25 to$4o tfi
Climax $25 to$27.50
Wabash $i 5 smm^m
BEMIDJI, MINNESOTA, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1903.
DAILY PIONEER.
MOVEMENT IS SERIOUS
AMERICAN CONSUL REPORTS AN
OTHER EXTENSIVE REVOLT
I N SANTO DOMINGO.
OUR MINISTER SAID TO BE IN DAN6ER
NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS WILL
BE TAKEN TO PROTECT THE
AMERICAN LEGATION.
Washington, Dec. 16.Mr. Simpson,
the United States consul at Puerto
Plata, San Domingo, has cabled the
state department that a revolution has
broken cit at Santiago and that the
movement is extensive and serious.
This is supposed to be the result of
the failure of the provisional govern
ment to secure recognition at the
hands of United States Minister Pow
ell, which fact operated to prevent
that government from obtaining neces
sary money to maintain itself through
a foreign loan.
Nothing is known officially of the
reported plots against the life of Unit
ed States Minister Powell, but the
navy will take all necessary precau
tions to protect the American legation
in San Domingo. The Newport will
return there from San Juan as soon as
she is coaled.
PLOT TO KILL POWELL.
American Minister Has Enemies in
San Domingo.
New York, Dec. 16.An alleged plot
to assassinate William F. Powell,
United States minister to Hayti and
charge at Puerto Plata, Santo Domin
go, has been disclosed in a communi
cation from an official of the present
Dominican government to a fellow
countryman in this city, who formerly
was an official under Wos Gil. tho
recently deposed president of the re
public. The letter states that the plot
had been so arranged that ex-Presi
dent, .limine under whose leadership
W%s Gil was overthrown, should be
killed at about the same time. The
plot to assassinate Minister Powell, it
was asserted, was conceived because
of his opposition to plans of certain
officials. The plan, as reported, was
to let two or throe men get into a fight
on a street when Mr. Powell was pass
ing. It was then arranged that In the
melee other plotters Bhould engage
and it would be an easy matter to kill
the American "by accident."
With regard to Jiminez the writer
asserts that he was to be the victim
of plain assassination and that already
two unsuccessful attacks have been
made upon his person. The first oc
curred Dec. 8, when a shot was fired
at him while he was driving. The
second attempt was made three days
later.
RUSSIAN INFLUENCE STRONG.
Korea May Refuse to Open the Port
of Wiju.
Seoul, Dec. IB.More rioting has
taken place at Mokphe and a Japanese
mob wounded, seventeen Koreans.
High Korean officials are Hurrying to
Mokphe to try and quell the disorders.
So far Russia has not interfered.
United States Minister Allen has de
manded a definite answer from the
Korean government in regard to the
opening of the port of Wiju. Despite
American. British and Japanese pres
sure Russian influence over the Ko
rean government is apparently un
shaken and it is expected that Korea
will procrastinate in dealing with the
matter and possibly may refuse even
tually to act at all. A feeling of un
rest is growing among the Korean
people, who fear that whether It be
peace or war between Russia and
Japan that the extinction of the em
pire is imminent.
It is believed that the outbreak of
hostilities or the announcement of a
protectorate of any kind will precipi
tate trouble. Foreigners in Seoul ex
pect disorders and the American resi
dents desire a warship.
BOTH SIDES LOSE HEAVILY.
Sanguinary Conflicts Between Persians
and Turks.
St. Petersburg. Dec. 16.Sanguinary
conflicts between Persians and Turco
mans are reported to have occurred
on the Russo-Persian frontier. The
trouble arose from the establishment
of Persian customhouses. Fights be
tween customs officers and Turcomans
followed and resulted in killings on
both sides. The governor of Astrabad,
with a large body of troops, inter
vened and refused an indemnity of
fered by the Turcoman Khans. In the i
fighting which ensued both sides BUS
f.ained heavy losses.
According to a telegram to the No
voe Vremya the Persian troops were
defeated and retired to Astrabad.
IN ANTICIPATION OF WAR.
French Troops Massing on the Siam
ese Border.
Paris, Dec. 16.Dispatches from In
do-China report the massing of French
troops on the Siamese border in an
ticipation cf war. The officials of
Indo-Chlna are quoted as saying that
the occupation of a large slice of Siam
has been decided upon. The authori
ties In Paris do not believe that a rup
tr.re with Siam will occur and say the
measures taken are merely precau-'
tionarv.
I I i
VWWWwwww^w^^
Something
FOR
Is Something Unusual,
Bvit]Beginning 5 3 3
Monday. December 14,
WE HALL
jj Give Away Free
S 50 MINIATITRK
ibta Ct a MS.
i
These'1
One With Every $10 Cash Purchase.
Our Line of
We
are pleased
to
have you come
and
look over
our stock
whether you
purchase
or not.
Watches,
Diamonds,
Clocks,
Silverware,
TEN CENTS PER WEEK.
Nothing
Little Clocks are not toys
but Practical Time Keepers and we
(Guarantee Evervone^to'l KunTand
KeepVrime,
Cut Glass and
Souvenir China
Is the most (complete and Newest
Designed in Bemidji.
Every
article
guaranteed
to give
satisfaction
or
your money
will
be
refunded.
E. A. BARKER.
513^Third Street, Bemidji, Minn.
We
will be
pleased
to
lay aside
anything
you
may select
until
Christmas.