February 25, 19lil 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



17 



Palmer Attacks Southern Pine Interests 



Demands Injunction Similar to That Asked Against Hardwood Manufacturers; 



Charges Pine Men with Conspiracy to Curtail 

 Output and Enhance Prices 



(Special Dispatch from Washington Staff Correspondent) 



Attorney-Cieiieral Palmer has (iriUn-cd suit to be hnmylit in tlie 

 Federal District Court at St. Louis against tiie Southern Pine Asso- 

 ciation, about 50 of its principal member companies and 70 indi- 

 viduals, on the ground that they liave entered into a conspiracy 

 to curtail the production and increase the price of yellow pine lum- 

 ber in violation of tlie Sherman anti-trust law. 



Tlie government's brief, which will be filed in St. Louis by the 

 U. S. district attorney there on Feb. 23 or 24, according to officials 

 of the Department of Justice, names among the defendants The 

 Long-Bell Lumber Co., Edward Hines Lumber Co., W. R. Pickering 

 Lumber Co., Central Coal & Coke Co., Missouri Lumber & Land 

 Excllauge, Kirby Lumber Co., Great Southern Lumber Co., Jordan 

 Kiver Lumber Co., W. T. Smith Lumber Co., Southern Pine Lumber 

 Co., Weaver Bros. Lumber Co., Central Lumber Co., Enterprise 

 Lumber Co., Thompson Bros. Lumber Co., Lumber Review Co., Lum- 

 ber Trade Journal, The American Ijunibernian and the Baird Pub- 

 lisliing Co. 



Individuals Named 



Among the individuals named are Charles L. Keith, president 

 Central Coal & Coke Co.; R. A. Long, president Long-Bell Co.; 

 Edward Hines of the Hines Lumber Co.; R. B. Bearden of the Frost- 

 Johnson Lumber Co.; C. J. Mansfield, president Arkansas Soft Pine 

 Bureau; C. E. McDanial, statistician, Arkansas Soft Pine Bureau; 

 Allen E. Davis, statistician, Kansas City Exchange; E. P. Mallam, 

 secretary, Alabama Statistical Bureau, and about 60 other prom- 

 inent lumbermen. 



The proceedings will have as their aim the securing of a tem- 

 porary injunction which would restrain the defendants from further 

 participation in what the government alleges to be a conspiracy 

 for curtailing the production of soutliern pine lumber in Arkansas, 

 Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Mississijijii and Alabama, and agree- 

 ments to control prices. 



The brief declares that approximately 70 per cent of tlie entire 

 output of .yellow pine lumber in the United States has been pro- 

 duced in Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Missis- 

 sippi and Alabama. "Over ■'SO per cent of such lumber produced 

 in this group of states has been produced, sold to persons in other 

 states, and shipped to them liy persons and corporations who were 

 members of the defendant Southern Pine Association," the brief 

 says. "This association is also affiliated with and supervises 

 so-called 'statistical exchanges' situated in Kansas City, Mo., Alex- 

 andria, La., Hattiesburg, Miss., Little Rock, Ark., and Birmingham, 

 Ala., which comprise in their membersliip many other pers<ins and 

 corporations engaged in such business. 



Uniform Curtailment Charged 



The government alleges that for many years jirior to 11)14 the 

 defendants sought to bring about-uniform curtailment of production 

 and enhancement of prices of yellow pine lumber on the part of all 

 producers thereof. "Agreements to make such curtailment were 

 entered into by the defendants and others," the government alleges, 

 and says: "Vigorous efforts were exerted by them through propa- 

 ganda and other means to secure the greatest possible adherence to 

 such curtailment plan; to further such a plan there was published 

 and distributed a speech by defendant R. A. Long, president of the 

 association, delivered at its meeting in January, 1905, to the effect 



that through the curtailment already accomplished ami the resultant 

 increase in prices promulgated through the association 'jirices cur- 

 rent,' the members had secured an additional profit of about 

 $6,300,000." 



Copies of the Weekly "Trade Barometer" for the week ended 

 Feb. 4, 1921, and the monthly "Trade Barometer" for December,. 

 1920, are to be exhibited as evidence tending to show comparison.s 

 of current production and orders and sliipmeuts. 



The brief alleges that the defendants agreed with one another in 

 co-ordinating and enhancing prices, stating that in the spring of 

 1919 the defendants caused W. M. Beebe, chairman of the Southern 

 Pine Association's sub-committee on competitive woods, personally 

 to persuade the principal manufacturers of Douglas fir lumber to 

 make substantial increases in their prices, wliich w'cre so far below 

 prices then prevailing for yellow pine lumber as to threaten the 

 defendants' power to maintain such prices. 



Want Statistical Work Stopped 



The brief asks that the court stop tlie defendants from publish- 

 ing or distributing any further issues of trade barometers, "Reports 

 of Operating Time" or "Monthly Stock" statements, or any other 

 charts, diagrams or reports concerning the amount of such lumber 

 produced or to be produced; not to hold any further meetings of the 

 association or of the "Statistical Exchanges," and that the court 

 find the defendants to have engaged in-a combination and con- 

 spiracy to increase the prices of yellow pine lumber. 



Commenting on the attack just made by Attornej'-General 

 Palmer on the Southern Pine Association, Gen. L. C. Boyle of 

 Washington, D. C, declares that it is "beyond human understand- 

 ing why the government should have indulged in this activity," 

 in view of the similar ease against the American Hardwood Manu- 

 facturers' Association now pending in the Supreme Court of the 

 United States. General Boyle is chief of counsel, defending the 

 hardwood ii\anufacturers. In full, his statement is: 



General Boyle's Opinion 



"The injunction suit filed by the Department of Justice against 

 the Southern Pine Association and a large number of individual 

 operators is along parallel lines with the case now pending in th»- 

 Supreme Court against the hardwood manufacturers, which latter 

 case will in all probability be decided next Monday, and if not 

 then, shortly thereafteT. The decision in the hardwood case will 

 definitely settle every legal phase of the legal questions raised in 

 the Southern Pine case. It is therefore inconceivable why the 

 department should have filed this present suit when the whole 

 problem of the legality of co-operation will be shortly determined.. 

 Comment shouhl be made on the fact that it is conceded by archi- 

 tects, contractors and builders that lumber is now selling at bed- 

 rock and by bringing this suit the government throws a wrench in 

 the wheels of progress, because the public will be led to believe 

 that lumber prices are too high and, therefore, building will be dis- 

 couraged, whereas it is recognized b.y everyone that lumber is sell- 

 ing below cost. So well is this recognized that the city of Chicago 

 is now permitting lumber to be used for building purposes in zones 

 heretofore restricted on account of fire regulations, and is doing" 

 this because of the low price of lumber material. It is beyond 

 human understanding why the government should have indulged iit 

 this activity." (Signed) L. C. Boyle. 



