The doctrine of conspiracy was thus
given a clear and unequivocal definition.
Another noteworthy feature of the Pittsburgh case was the emphasis given
to the idea that the defendants' conduct was harmful to the public. The
judge condemned the defendants because they tended "to create a monopoly
or to restrain the entire freedom of the trade." What a municipality is
not allowed to do, he argued, a private association of individuals must
not be allowed to do.
Of the group of cases which grew out of the revival of trade union
activity in the twenties, the first, a case against Philadelphia master
shoemakers, was decided in 1821, and the judge held that it was lawful
for the masters, who had recently been forced by employes to a wage
increase, to combine in order to restore wages to their "natural level."
But he also held that had the employers combined to depress wages of
journeymen below the level fixed by free competition, it would have been
criminal.
Another Pennsylvania case resulted from a strike by Philadelphia tailors
in 1827 to secure the reinstatement of six discharged members.
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