The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-01-30
The Board of Health Examines
the Market Inspec-
tor.
WHY HE RELEASED sOLoMAN.
Some of the Points That Were Both.
ering the Health Officials
Cleared Up.

The Board of Health investigated the
sensational charges recently made by a
morning paper against Meat Inspector Ben
Davis, and while the latter had bad hour
of it he came out with torn but flying
colors.
The charges were based on transaction
that took place at the New City Hall some
time ago, when Milk Inspector Dockery
and Veterinary Surgeon Creeiy of the
board seized CARLOAD of calves which
were being brought into town by ]. S.
Soloman. Davis happened to come up
and learning of the seizure grew lndig-
nant at what he called interference with
his duties, and released the meat, saying
that it was all right.
Later he claimed that his indignation
was all feigned and that he had released
Soloman and his load so that he could re-
arrest him in the act OF selling 1t and thus
get stronger case against him.
He declared that he had arrested Solo
man, taken the calves from him and deliv-
cred them at the fertiIizing works. The
main point made by those who were press
ing the charges was that il had been dis
covered that Soloman had sold Mark
Strouse ten calves, when if Davis had
seized three out of the eleven first found
in the wagon and DR.. Greedy one, he could
not have delivered that number.
The defense explained this away by
producing a receipt from another butcher.
named Levy, showing that on the date of
the transaction Seloman had bought three
calves from him for Sill. Soloman testi-
fled and was corroborated by Strouse that
he had agreed to deliver ten calves to the
Market-street butcher and that he had
therefore purchased them from rival in
order to fulfill his contract. Davis story
of the seizure after having once released
the butcher was corroborated by Soloman.
Soloman claimed that in spite of his ar
rest the calves he was selling were all of
sufficient age to make them fit for human
food. When asked why he had pleaded
guilty in the Police Court on a charge
growing out of the same transaction, of
selling immature veal, he said that he had
done so to get out of the case as quickly as
possible, and because he did not wish to
get into trouble with the Board of Health.
Dennis Spencer, the attorney of the
board, and u. D. Crawford, the newspaper
reporter who wrote the articles rejecting
on Davis, cross-examined the INSPECTOR
and endeavored to draw from him certain
facts regarding the time he had taken to
follow Soloman to Strouse's market, make
the seizure, convey the three calves that
were seized TO fertiliZlng works and return
to the new City Hall.
According to the line of their questions
he must have accomplished all this within
forty minutes. Davis claimed that this
might have been posi- BILE, but declined to
accept their estimates of time, saying that
as he had not consulted his watch he was
not at all sure that he had left the hall or
any other place at any certain time.
The board was evidently not much i'm
pressed by the evidence of the prosecu-
ton, as shown by the manner in which
the testimony was handled, and took the
matter under advisement, promising to
examine the transcripts carefully and rem
der decision at an early date.