The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-03-03
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LARD NOT HURT BY OIL.
A COMMISSION MERCHANT GIVES
HIS VIEWS.

He Refuses to Believe That Coal OIL
Tanks Are Used for Transporting the
Product of the Cotton Seed-Chair-
man Tillman Very Brusque in His
Manner
WASHINGTON, March 2-Abram S.
jewell a commission merchant Of New
York, and member of the New YorR
Produce Exchange, appeared before the
House Committee on Agriculture this morn
ing. Up to 1878, he said he had been in the
lard business, and has dealt largely in lard.
His firm had been probably the first in the
country TO manufacture refined lard. Before
the hog packing business was brought to it's
present state of excellence, and when hogs
were cured in small establishments, it
was almost impossible to get a
| thousand tierces of lard of any uniformity,
and his firm had conceived the idea of rem
dering lard so as to make 1t uniform. 1t
put no outside substances into lard, but into
lard which was exported to South Ameri-
can countries it mixed stearine in order to
harden the lard and enable it to stand warm
weather. Competition had grown so
rapidly that manufacturers sought some.
thing to cheaper tho product and used
water.
A LITTLE TOO MUCH.
Finally so much water was put into lard
| that buyers rejected it. As much as 81 per
cent. of water was put in. To-day steam
lard contained 2 or 3 per cent. Of water.
scarcely any less than per cent. Kettls
rendered lard was absolutely free from
| water When buyers refused lard on ac-
count of the large amount of water in IL The
manufactures looked about for some cheap
article to take its place ana fixed upon
| cotton seed oil. 1t was found
that it combined with lard without dam
aging it, while it cheapened its cost. The
adding of oil to lard necessitated the use Of
| a hardening substance like stearine to coun<
teract it. About the time cotton seed oil
| began to bo used oeomargarine stearine
came into the market. 1t was made from
the kidney fat of the bullock. There was
nothing purer that could come from animal
| fat, and it was used in hardening lard
CONSIDERED WHOLESOME.
| He did not know exactly what propor-
| tion of cotton seed oil went into lard, but
| he should think the proportion to be about
| sixty pounds of lard TO twenty-five pounds
! OF oil and fifteen pounds of stearine. This
| product he considered TO be wholesome, and
| just as good as pure lard as far as cooking
| was concerned. There were standard quail
| tiles OF cotton seed OIL, but he did not know
| that they differed, except as to color
Chairman-Do You know how cotton seed
oil is transported from the Southi
| The Witness think IL comes in barrels.
| The Chairman-Do you know whether
the Standard Oil Company is transporting
cotton seed oil from the South i'll coal oil
| tanks2
The Witness-I do not | never heard Of
| it, but | think it would be practicable.
ABAD MIXTURE.
The Chairman-W Would you regard it as a
proper thing for the Standard OIL Company
| TO III tanks in Pennsylvania with coal oil,
| take them Sohth, aud then fill them with
cotton seed oil for transportation to the
| North7
The Wtness-No. sir; it would utterly
| ruin it.
The Chairman--If it has been done il
would change your views about the whole
someness of this produotl
The Witness~-It could not be done with
| out detection.
The Chairrnan--Then 1t has been detected
| because it has been done. The evidence is
conclusive on that point. Parties who
transported it have sworn to it before the
Interstate Commerce Commission. The
chair knows exactly what it is talking
| about.
| Attorney Cromwels-At the proper time
/ would like the privilege Of correcting the
| chairman.
The Chairman-The Chairman would
| like TO be corrected If you bring here to
perjure themselves the witnesses who testi-
| fled TO the fact
MIR MorQan-W Would not business man
who would do that be derangedn
The Witness-If be wanted to use oil for
culinary purposes. My idea is that you
| could not put cotton seed oil in kerosene
tanks without damaging it.
his IDEA OF THE INQUIRY.
In answer to questions by Mr. Morgan
the witness repeated his statement that cot
ton seed oil and stearine was put in
! lard 20 cheaper the price. The contest go
| ing on be regarded as a controversy be-
| tween business interested in maintaining
! the price Of lard and one interested i'm Civ
! ing an equally good article at cheaper
price. He did not think that the falling
| off in exports of lard could be entirely ac-
| counted for by the tact that refined lard
was exported 1t might be caused by an
increase iu the European hog and olive
crops
Mr.. Laird presented to the witness a sam
pie Of cotton seed oil and asked his opinion
as to its quality
After examining it the witness replied
that the man who would put 1t in his lard
must be crazy.
Mr.. Laird-Either crazy or corrupt.
ONLY GOOD OIL USED.
The witness did not think that that quail
ity was put into lard. The oil put in lard
was perfectly sweet. Cotton seed oil prop
erly refined was as wholesome as any other
vegetable oil.
On being cross examined by Mr.. Wilson
the witness stated that he did not think
refners employed chemists, and be did not
know whether white grease, made from
smOthered hogs, was used in the manufac-
ture Of refined lard. He thought that the
object OF the controversy was that the man
ufacturers of compounded lard should brand
it as compounded lard
| Mr.. Wilson-Suppose that it gets to be
/ known abroad that what is being sold as
prime lard contains 40 per cent. Of cotton
seed OIL would not that create distrust and
hurt the trade in pure lard.
| The witness--lt would not create distrust.
/ Business men generally have heads enough
| 10 know whether they are buying trash or
good article.
Pensacola Pointers.