St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-09-10
DEsPoTIC BEEF BARoNs.
They Fix Prices and Crush All
Competition,

KANSAS CRY, Mo-, Sept. 9.-The senate
committee investigating the dressed beef
question began its session this morning in
the parlors of the Midland hotel. George
Click. ex-governor of Kansas, and Charles
burst, Of Atchison, were the only witnesses
examined this forenoon Mr.. Click said he
had been in the cattle-raising business for
thirty years. during which time the prices
had deteriOrated 80 to 40 per cent He
ment at Kansas City OF a great packing In
terest which had developed first great
competition among the sellers Of cat
tie, and afterwards combination among
packers, which was So powerful that its
members could buy cattle at their own
prices. He related his own experience in at
tempting to sell cattle at better prices than
those fixed by the combine" concluding
with the statement that after re-shipping cat
tie to Chicago he was compelled to sell at
butcher business at Atchison was being
ruined by the combination until the city
council passed and infOrced city ordinance
requiring the inspection of beef on the hoof.
Charles burst, a butcher of Atchison, testified
that the impression existed among his bust
ness acquaintance that there is
COMBINATION AMONG PACKERS
to control the prices of dressed beef and cat
tle Gov. Click was recalled this afternoon
to testify regarding the sanitary regulations
SO far as he knew there were pract-
cally no sanitary supervisors of
the yards John j. Roe, Michael
Lynch and j. Matthew Spann, of Saline,
county. all stock feeders of long experience,
testified to the great depreciation in prices of
cattle, and attributed it to lack of compe-
titiou caused bya combination of the packers
to determine the price to be paid James
Banks, who was III the custom of selling his
cattle on the Chicago market, testified that
SD ms nj m N
that the big Four" controlled the prices,
but dared not give the commission mans
name Tor fear the Chicago packers would
boycott him and ruin his business. James
Lopez and j. Richard Thomas rehearsed
their experience on the Chicago market, and
hoped the committee would go to the bottom
OF the matter. Abel Leonard, of Saline
county, testified that Norris assisted by the
combination. controlled the vessel room,
thereby precluding the export of cattle at a
profit, and that the railroads naturally ia
vored the packers because they got two hauls,
one on the live cattle going to market, and
one in the distribution of the finished pro-
duct James Hap, of Kansas City, said he
operated the Kansas City market. He testified
that
HE HAD RECEIVED WARNING
not to buy too many cattle. He had not
needed il, and was forced to sell his next
bunch of cattle at q loss of $780, The COM
bine then wanted to know if he had had
enough. He told them he thought he had.
A. j. Morris, of the packing firm of Morris,
Butts d. Co., the last witness, gave his testi-
mony very reluctantly. He was forced to ad-
nit that one of his customers had received
threatening letters from one of the packers
in the combine. His own firm had received
threatening letters but they did not frighten
him. The witness had personal knowledge
of combine between Armour, Swift Morris
and Hammond by which the territory east of
the Mississippi was divided between them In
such manner that neither would encroach
on the territory of the others. The investi-
CATION will continue here until the end Of the
week