Chapter 522 DuPont Takes the Lead
"Now that old man Coleman DuPont is furious, and he has fallen out with the boss, I guess trouble will come soon," Jesla still had that expressionless look on his face, and he said in a flat tone, "The boss should be prepared in advance to avoid being caught off guard in the future."
"Caught off guard? I don't have any other advantages, but there is one thing, I can stay put. As long as I feel it is necessary, I can stay in Oak Manor for a whole year without leaving." Sheffield smiled, put down the pen in his hand, tapped on the table with two fingers, and said, "So for me, one more or one less does not make much difference. If he wants to come, let him come. Just like the Eastern saying goes, if an enemy comes, we will stop him with a general and if a flood comes, we will cover it with earth. I will just give him a countermeasure against his moves."
"Boss, please don't be too optimistic. I suggest you be cautious," Jesla said in a serious tone. "I think New Orleans and Arlington should be more vigilant recently to see if there are any loopholes. After all, the DuPont family has never been a model of ethics. If they make a fuss in this regard, wouldn't you be in a passive position?"
Although the bodyguard leader spoke very cryptically, Sheffield still understood what he meant. This manager from the Black Gold Company was reminding himself that the DuPont family had an ignominious beginning. They manipulated the country's land transactions, intervened in the Civil War, and later implemented martial law in Delaware. Any one of these things would be a very shocking event. Based on this tradition, the DuPont family might really feel dizzy for a while.
But what can I say, Sheffield is not worried at all, because when he is blaming the DuPont family, he is actually blaming himself. I can't say all of it, but basically, the Sheffield family seems to have done something similar to what the DuPont family has done. They are all experts in talking with guns.
The DuPont family sent people directly to New Orleans or Arlington? It's better not to go to Arlington. A regiment of the Texas National Guard is stationed near Arlington all year round. Come to New Orleans. There are not many Black Gold members near Oak Manor now, but there are thousands of them. Want to decapitate me? This is absolutely impossible.
In fact, to be fair, facing an opponent like the DuPont family is not without its advantages in some aspects. The advantage is that because both sides have done so many bastard things, when they stare at each other, they can almost guess what the other side might do.
This is like two murderers who have committed a murder and choose to live in seclusion in the same city. The residents of this city do not know that the two are murderers, but both sides know each other's history and have a strong sense of defense against each other. Anyone who dares to reveal this matter will be courting death.
Assassination is impossible to succeed, and there is no environment for an open fight. No matter how free the United States is, it is not free enough to allow two nationally renowned companies to have a corporate Civil War.
So the risk of a violent solution cannot be said to be zero, but as long as Sheffield stays in Oak Manor, he does not believe that any force other than the military can come in. As for the Arlington Base Camp, it is much safer than Oak Manor.
The possibility of a fight in the legal world, at least in the current situation, is still far greater than the possibility of an open fight. Of course, we cannot rule out the possibility that one party will take risks after failing in the legal world, but Sheffield is not a fool. Of course, he will be prepared. Risks and gold, um, and opportunities coexist. The risk is not that big now.
It seems that Sheffield did not do anything to the DuPont family. Didn't he just talk about the DuPont family's tradition of incestuous marriage in the newspaper? The first premise is whether this matter is true. This is not fake news. If this is the real situation, why is it not allowed to be said? Is the DuPont family so domineering?
In conclusion, Sheffield wanted to use the words of King Louis XVI, who served in his homeland, from the Dupont family to assess the current situation, "Nothing to do today!"
"Maybe the boss is right!" Jesla listened to some of his boss's opinions and felt that there seemed to be some truth in them.
"It's not maybe, it's a basic rule of a free society." Sheffield said with a teachable expression, "The law has always been different for different classes. Our judges are good at sentencing small people to serious crimes to deter them, and sentencing big people to minor crimes to make them turn back. So you can see that the DuPont family has launched a heavy attack on various forces that are not as good as themselves, but when facing the Rockefeller family more than a decade ago, weren't they just prepared to compete? Where is their family's explosives? Why didn't they blow up the Rockefeller family's factory?"
Although they are both convictions, the one for ordinary people is a conviction, while the one for big shots is a set one, which is harmless, just right, and just right. Give you a chance to correct yourself!
When the market was full of fake news, Pierre du Pont in a chemical plant in Delaware felt that something was wrong. The latest batch of saltpeter should have arrived three days ago. Almost immediately, he thought that someone was tampering with the transportation route. It was not Pierre du Pont's fault that he was slow to realize it. This was not the first time that the United Company had initiated a price war. During President Roosevelt's term, the two sides had started a price war, which ended in nothing.
During that period, the transportation network had never had any problems, so when Pierre Dupont felt something was wrong this time, he did not think about the transportation route. After the raw materials should have arrived but did not, he felt that things seemed to be unexpected. Just like a certain future president of the United States, this is not the flu.
This cannot be blamed on the slave owners. The last price war was during the term of President Roosevelt. First of all, President Roosevelt was the president of the Republican Party. Although Sheffield could use Alice Roosevelt to insinuate himself, the fact is that he had no say. The relationship between the DuPont family and most important figures in the Republican Party was far inferior, not to mention that Coleman DuPont was a member of the Republican National Committee.
Even the environment is favorable to the DuPont family and unfavorable to Sheffield. Moreover, President Roosevelt is a strong president. Even if ordinary means cannot alarm this president, once you try to find a way to change the transportation network, it will touch the nerves of this strong president. You should know what happened to the Northern Securities Company that tried to change the transportation network.
So in the final analysis, the last price war was caused by Sheffield not having an environment that was conducive to collusion between officials and businessmen. On the contrary, the DuPont family had this environment, and they did not dare to put a noose on Delaware during Roosevelt's term.
In order to develop railways and a series of transportation networks, there must be a favorable political environment for the entire United States. This is exactly what Sheffield lacked during Roosevelt's term. The current political environment is completely different. The Democrats are now in control of the federal government, and even most states are under the control of the Democrats. A major railway artery passes through so many places. Even for the sake of safety, developing in the states controlled by the Democrats can cut off DuPont's raw material supply line.
Knowing the seriousness of the situation, Pierre Dupont first called his subordinates over and asked, "How long can our local inventory last now?"
"Less than two months!" Pierre Dupont heaved a sigh of relief after hearing this answer. Things had not yet deteriorated to the point where they were out of control. If they could think of a way within two months, they could still save the situation. Moreover, even if the opponent did not give up, they could still gather the necessary raw materials from other countries within two months.
If the raw materials are shipped from Africa by ship, two months will be enough. The current situation is definitely not enough to make the DuPont family bow their heads. What the Rockefeller family could not do, the United Company will definitely not be able to do.
Pierre Dupont was also planning his own counterattack. The trial against the United Company for unfair competition must be held immediately. First, the case law should be used to settle the matter. With this foundation, the transportation network problem can be solved to force Sheffield to stop.
It has to be said that although the effect has not yet been seen immediately, the problems in the transportation network have already made Pierre DuPont feel the pressure. This time, the attack by the United Company is much more dangerous than the last price war. It can even be compared with the attack by the Rockefeller family.
The Rockefeller family was eventually threatened by antitrust laws and gave up, which gave Pierre du Pont the idea of repeating history. In fact, the Rockefeller family had already given up before the DuPont family resorted to law. If it was possible then, it should be possible now.
The trial of the DuPont family against Sheffield Associates in Delaware began in such an environment. From the time the problem with the transportation of raw materials was detected to the opening of the trial, it took only more than 30 hours, less than two days, which proved the DuPont family's superior status in Delaware.
Seeing the lawyer defending Sheffield United Company walk into the court, a little-known young face, the plaintiff's manager representing the DuPont family sneered in his heart. The other party was also a smart man, and it seemed that he had already thought of the outcome and did not even struggle.
After a routine period of questioning and counter-questioning, with both sides stating their defenses, the Delaware court issued a verdict almost instantly, declaring that Sheffield Associates had committed unfair competition and that DuPont had won the case.
(End of this chapter)
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