The Nixon Administration, which seems determined to prove itself tougher on antitrust policy than the Democrats were, has lost an important round in its fight against corporate bigness. Last week a federal court refused to stop International Telephone & Telegraph, the largest conglomerate, from going ahead with one of the biggest mergers in U.S. history—the acquisition of Hartford Fire Insurance Co. The combination would raise ITT's assets by 50%, to more than $6 billion.
ITT has already spread into hotels (Sheraton), car renting (Avis), home building (Levitt & Sons), book publishing (Bobbs-Merrill) and bread (Continental Baking). Why would this aggressive...
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