THE SUGAR TRUST

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 21 December 1912, Page 5

THE SUGAR TRUST

BREACH OF THE ACT ESTABLISHED. EACH DEFENDANT FINED £IOOO. (By Telegraph — tress Association.) WELLINGTON, Last Night, Sir Robert. Stout, Chief Justice, delivered reserved judgment to-day in the- sugar case, King v. the Merchants' Association. He found (T.) That the discount scalds of the Colonial Sugar Company Nos 2 and 3 were made to prevent competition in the sale and disposal of sugar; ('2) That they were made to enable the commercial trust, or association, through a group of buyers, to got control of the distribution of sugar; (3) That they were made so as to prevent Messrs Fairbairn, Wright and Co., or other persons, from purchasing sugar and giving certain discounts to purchasers from them; (I) That defendants were acting in consort, or conspiring together to get this control; (o) That they were marie so as to ensure a profit that might otherwise not have gone to the members of the trust, going to member'-, of the trust.

Tn the course of bis judgment. Sir Robert Stout mh] that in his opinion tho Court must hold that the kce;m<r up of thr. price of goods, or not reducing thorn when they could be reduced if there wovo. free competition, was eontvavv to the public interest To-say that a difference of 4 or =l.l (per cent on goods would not nnVt nriees was not m-ovod. The only evidence --! tin spbioe* was that it would 1 "^ vi *■"? ""'V" *o the consumer v the dofemb-ts -allcd'no cvfdenc" to eontradict the statements of Mr Fairbairn, the Court must assume that no such cadence could have been cal'ed. H,.«= H 0, , 0.. M(] t]mi the AnstraHai) Coal'\ end case was? not parallel wi+fi the cas.?u nder review. Tf the Simar l.oTunauv carried out. or arranged tc carry out., schemes that the status declared to be offences, such schemes must J.e f 7o» motl t<) - ha oontrarv t(! the pubbc interest. What was the,, J>» aim of the defendants in altering then- scales? J„ nfs opiVon tW ; eonld only b 0 one answer, it was to orevent oersons who were not mom(>«i\s of the commercial trust "rom ovt■•■intr the,,- good,-, at the same price as pe>-.,-oris who were members of roiomcrcial trust. It was to arrange a discount for one class and not for another class: to arrange n di«o»nfc 'or a. class that would obey the commerce, rr "«t. and give another os,<;o,,nt to a class that would not obov I -i, commercial trust. Such aofn'n ;''! prohibited by sect-V. * of the Act. He found all fh 0 defends gudty of the offences charged ". paragraph 37 of the statement" ~f olnirn in the first action hoincr an «.f----t"ncc untie,- section sof the Act. The hugar Company was guilty under sec.J. m sivmsr discounts to Messrs ' Tev,n and Cr>. The defendants other than the Sugar Company were «ruiltv nf an ofT ( .„ce „ude,- section 7of the Act, As to the second action, he ■'■ound that Messrs Levin and Co wenot, the nrineipals in the transaction of g.vn..<r d:scount s an d not r nP agents of the Sugar Company. Kacii devendnnt was fined in an aggregate of :C\m •■„ tho.fi«ft action wilh costs. Jud-rment was -riven for the f.of-.| l |.t ll and Cnnpanv. , After the judgment, had been d«- I hvei-ed. Mr Skerrett, 7 for t\o Mc--chants' Association, asked if jud.»- ' ment was for the defendants in' tv finst action in respect to those «harges under section 4. .

His Honor: I have nicked out ih". sections T consider judgment sbo.iif' bo triven for the Crown on. Mr Skerrett: And those you lnre not mentioned, you do not con sidehave been proved. His Honor : That i« so. In -answer to the Attorney-General His Honor said he would allow fifte"ii guineas costs in respect to the interlocutory proceedings. Mr Skerrett: I anply for a stay of proceedings, pending the determination of an anneal. The Crown is willing to consent, on the understanding that security bo found for tho amount of the judgment, and costs, by Tatir.nrv 21st, the appellants "to undertake to oroeeed with the appeal ;;fc tho April sitting of the Court of Appeal. A stay of proceedings was granted :>n these terms. Mr Herdman: Wo claimed an injunction. Your Honor did not mention it. His Honor: That is a ma'ter you can move for, if you wish. T think it 13 a ,matter there is no -iced for. I wflT reserve the question f.f an injunction and you can make application.