The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-12-23
after BEEF
CONTRACTORS.
General Miles Is Making a
Thorough Investigation.
SUSPICIOUS WERE AROUSED.
Hundreds Of Tons Of Refrigerator and Canned
Meat Unfit For Use.
ON PRETENSE Of AN EXPERIMENT.
The General Says That Was The Excuse For Send
ing an Enormous Quantity Of Beet 10 an
Army In Tropical Climate.
Hundreds Of Tons Of Refrigerator and Canned
Meat Unfit For Use.
ON PRETENSE OF AN EXPERIMENT

Cincinnati, o., Dec. 23.-Gen. Miles
has returHed 10 Washington after be-
ing the guest OF honor here last night
at the New England banquet, The
Commercial Tribune has the following
interview with him:
When asked as TO the investigation
into the beef ration scandal he is now
making. To which he referred in his
testimony Wednesday. Gen. Miles said
My suspicious We're aroused several
months ago, and l at once instituted
an investigation into the matter OF
sending beef to the army i'm the West
Indies. The reference i'm my testimony
of Wednesday relating To 337 tons OF
refrigerator beef and 1873 900 pounds OF
canned fresh beef, which was unfit for
food il only an item. This quantity
was sent To- one town i'm Porto Rico
alone. How much more was sent to
Porto Rico I do not know"
How was the beef supply for the
army i'm Cuba"
"It was just as bad. The conditions
there were no better than they We're
in Porto Rico, as 1 indicated i'm my tes-
timony"
How about rations before the army
embarked? Was the supply no better
before the transports sailed than after
the army was established in Cuba?"
lit was the same at Tampa and the
same at Jacksonville"
will you give a little more light as
TO what you meant by this assertion
I'm your testimony before the war COM
mission Wednesday,
Gen. Miles had suggested that the
food was sent to his large army under
~pretence of an experiment"
81 Think continued Gen. Miles,
pthat the sentence is sufficiently plain.
sPretence' is the precise term 10 use.
yt is absurd TO pretend that these enor-
mous quanaities of beef We're sent to
tan entire army simply as an expert
ment. To expect that the beef can be
exposed to tropical sun for 60 hours
without mortifying is out OF the ques-
ton"
slow about the chemicals used in
preparing this beef?"
sAs 1 stated i'm my testimony, 7 be-
1ieve that the action OF these chemicals
was largely responsible for the sickness
in the army. l have medical authority
for this statement and l believed il IN
be true"
How far along has your own investi-
cation into this subject progressed?"
1T began several months ago. | have
the testimony OF large number Of Off
GERS and men upon this matter. some
of which ] gave in my testimony be
fore the commission. My inQuiry is
still in progress. and some of the most
important information l have received
has been acquired in the last few days"
What channel viii this investigation
take upon its conclusion"
Il will not discuss that. 1t is my
duty to investigate any wrong existing
i'm the army. and that am now doing
in the regular military manner. The
work is not completed yet. and until il
is done | will have nothing more to add
TO the statement made before the COM
mission"
What was the matter with the
tents?"
There We're not enough OF them
They We're not suited to stand wet and
some of them We're poor"