'Wrongful,  and  henoe  that  if  they  did  what  the  indid^ttient
charges  them  with  having  done,  their  acts  were  contrary  to
the  Anti-Trust  Act  in  its  literal  language;  and  they  must
be  held  to  know  of  the  exception  to  the  common  law  which
gives  them  a  wider  field  of  operation — ^which  makes  every
restraint,  brought  about  with  the  wrongful  purpose  of  pre-
venting the  free  flow  of  commerce  and  limiting  the  right  of
the  individual  to  contract,  unlawful.  Let  the  act  be  inter-
preted either  literally  or  in  the  light  of  reason — that  is  to
say,  to  effect  the  purposes  of  the  common  law  as  they  were
from  the  beginning,  whether  meaning  any  restraint  at  all,
or  any  restraint  brought  about  by  wrongful  purpose — the
defendants,  if  the  acts  charged  in  the  indictment  are  true,
were  advised  of  the  prohibitions  of  the  act  and  the  penalties
provided  therein.  If  the  facts  alleged  are  true,  wrongful
purpose  is  disclosed  in  every  one  of  them.  Indeed,  if  the
defendants  have  in  fact  done  what  they  are  charged  with
having  done,  there  is  exhibited  in  this  indictment  a  flagrant
case  of  conunercial  piracy.
