The History of the Standard Oil Company

by Ida M. Tarbell

CONSTRUCTING AN IRON TANK FOR STORING OIL

OIL AGITATORS

FIVE-BARREL STILL USED IN THE FIFTIES IN DISTILLING CRUDE OIL AS A LUMINANT

About two months after the new firm began building, the elder Everest, who had been in California, returned to Rochester, and soon after had several interviews with Miller. He impressed on the man, as his son had done, that the Buffalo Lubricating Works would never succeed. He told him that the Vacuum meant to bring suit against them for infringing their patents, and would get an injunction and stop the works; that Miller would lose all the money he had put in. To save himself, Everest advised Miller to come back to the Vacuum. “But that would leave them in a pretty bad fix,” Miller said. “That is exactly what I want to do,” replied Everest. The fear that the new concern might be ruined through the hostility of the Vacuum, and he lose his savings, seems to have preyed on Miller’s mind. He took his wife into his confidence, and she, too, became alarmed. He began to neglect his work in Buffalo. He was often away at nights. Matthews began to be worried by Miller’s neglect and absence, and to watch the stations to find, if possible, where he went. Miller’s question now became, how could he get away from the Buffalo firm? He had signed for the company a note for $5,000. He was under contract for a term of years. He discussed the question with the Everests, and they advised him to see his lawyer. On the seventh of June, according to H. B. Everest,[^[111]] who went with him to help present the case, Miller did consult George Truesdale, a lawyer of Rochester, who had always handled his business. Mr. Truesdale afterwards told in court what occurred:

“Mr. Everest stated that Miller had left his employ, and got engaged with another oil concern in the City of Buffalo; that he desired to get back again; he wanted him to come back; and he said he supposed Miller had explained to me his situation, and the obligations he was under to the Buffalo company. I told him that he had made some statements to me about his contract with the parties in Buffalo; that he had spoken about being an endorser or party to the note made by, I think he said, Matthews and Wilson and himself, and I think another party—four or five of them had made, endorsed a note to raise money, done to start the Buffalo business, and that he had a contract or an arrangement with them to go into a company at Buffalo to manufacture oil, and that he wanted to know how he could get out of that arrangement. I stated what I had said to Miller, that he would, of course, be liable on the note, if he was charged properly when it became due, and that if he wanted to get out of that arrangement my advice to him had been to see if he couldn’t get released; if they wouldn’t release him or buy out his interest; then, if he couldn’t do that, the only other way I saw was for him to leave them and take the consequences. I told him that I did not know the exact terms of his contract, but, if he had entered into a contract and violated it, I presumed there would be a liability for damages, as well as a liability for the debts of the Buffalo party. Mr. Miller and Everest both talked on the subject, and Mr. Everest says, ‘I think there is other ways for Miller to get out of it.’ I told him I saw no way except either to back out or to sell out; no other honourable way. Mr. Everest says, substantially, I think, in these words: ‘Suppose he should arrange the machinery so it would bust up, or smash up, what would the consequences be?’—something to that effect. ‘Well,’ I says, ‘in my opinion, if it is negligently, carelessly done, not purposely done, he would be only civilly liable for damages caused by his negligence; but if it was wilfully done, there would be a further criminal liability for malicious injury to the property of the parties, the company.’ Mr. Everest said he thought there wouldn’t be anything only civil liability, and said that would—he referred to the fact that I had been police justice, had some experience in criminal law—and he said that he would like to have me look up the law carefully on that point, and that they would see me again.”

Miller’s version of this interview is similar:

“I think Mr. Truesdale or myself, I am not positive which, asked the question what means I could take to get out of the company. H. B. says, ‘There is a good many ways he could get out.’ Either Mr. Truesdale or myself asked him how. ‘Well,’ he says, ‘he can cut up something or do something to injure them; something of that kind, to get out’; H. B. said this. Mr. Truesdale spoke up and said, ‘You must be very careful what you do or you will lay yourself criminally liable.’ Mr. Everest says to me, ‘There is ways that you can get out.’ I says to him, ‘You wouldn’t want me to do anything, would you, to lay myself liable?’ I think Mr. Truesdale spoke up and says, ‘You must be very careful or you will end in state’s prison,’—that is, I. There was considerable conversation I cannot just exactly remember; I have told all I recollect at present. Mr. Truesdale asked me if I had a contract with the Buffalo parties; I told him I had; ‘Well,’ he says, ‘the best thing you can do is to stay there, then,’ or something of that kind. I cannot say those were his exact words. H. B. Everest says, ‘If he comes back with us, why, we will look after him.’ I think Mr. Truesdale said that these men would be after me for leaving them. I think I told him the terms of the contract.... Mr. Everest says, ‘They will have to catch Miller before they can do anything to him; we will take care of him.’”[^[112]]