The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-02-21

SSHted MIN as having said that he hak
overwhelming evidence that the refrig
Grated beef was treated with chemi
Gals. The fact was that his only evi
dence was what was contained in th'
reports Of officers and statements o.
men who claimed that the beef had tn,
odor Of an embalmed body; that they
had seen fluid injected into beef anC
other indications of chemical treatment
He declared The interview an enron.
eous presentation of what he could pos
sibly have said.
ARMYS BEEF SUPPLY
Colonel Davis. recurring to the state
| ment of General Miles before the wal
| commission, asked him what his idea
as 10 the beef supply for the army was
| when war broke out Replying. Gen
! e1'al Miles said while his attention was
! occupied with weightier matters of mo
/ Dlllzaton and equipment of troops, he
| felt confident that the usage of 100
years would be followed and that cat
tie herds would be shipped to the army
IN the tropics, and killed there. Just as
they were during the civil war in the
south, in Arizona, Texas and in Mex
leo, where 1t was SO hot that soldiers
could not sit upon the rocks.
He understood Cuba and Porto Rico
were excellent grass countries. Cattle
could be shipped and kept in prime con-
dition. He reviewed his action in ca
bling the department to send no more
refrigerated beef TO Porto Rico while he
was there, finding it possible 10 use
beef on the hOof.
General Miles said that he understood
that our troops in Porto Rico were still
being supplied with a form of refrige-
rator beef, although the country was
as good a grazing country as any in the
world. and cattle there were plentiful.
and the Spanish troops drew all their
meat supply from this source
Colonel Davis asked if General Miles
knew whether Porto Rico exported any
cattle. Witness said it did TO the num-
Der of several thousand and they were
hne cattle Still he understood that our
troops We're not only receiving refrig-
Grated beef at the coast, but il was be-
ing sent into the interior. The situa-
ton now, he said, was different from
that during the war Now there were
ice machines on shore. Then there was
not ice enough for the hospitals.
Recurring to the expediency of feed
ing the troops hoof beef in Porto Rico,
General Miles said he was much in ia
Vor of it. He said native beef killed a t
night could be very well fed the men
next day.
DO you think continued Colonel
Davis, that the native beef would keep
as Well as the refrigerated beef in the
absence Of cooling apparatus on
shOre?''
I am quite sure il would, unless the
refrigerated beef was chemically treat
ed with preServatiVes. If il was treat /
ed so as to keep for seventy-two hours /
after coming from the coolers, of course !
it had the advantage of the native beef |
so far as keeping goes"
Asked how long he was in Porto Rico |
he ad
against sending any more refrigerated |
beeF, General Miles said he had learned /
OF the large supply of native cattle
oon-after landing, and advised the war
department the next day after getting
ashore.
CANNED ROAST BEEF.
Referring to the canned roast beef. as
from the refrigerator
beef, Colonel Davis read portion of
General Miles war commission testi-
nony, condemning it in severe terms.
General Miles said the canned roast
beef was issued to volunteers and reg
Ilar troops alike on the transports and
n Cuba until the arrival of the refrig-
srator beef
1t was fully tested by both the reg
liars and volunteers. The first com
ilaints of it, General Miles said, he had
heard at Tampa, from some of the
'ough riders, but he paid little atten-
ion to it at that time, not realizing
ully that there had been any change
rom the standard ration. He again
heard Of it aboard the Yale,
when the men declared they
,Ould not eat it. and he or
Tered the inspector to inquire into it.
again he heard of it in the trenches. at
santiago, but he was still largely occu-
lied with the campaign and he thought
lothing more of the complaints than
lie would of hearing that some man was
ticking about his coffee or of his hard
ack.
What finally drew his attention seri-
usly to the matter was the reports of :
Ulcers that the whole Fifth corps was
weak and Frustrated. This was in Au
ust, when the question of a parade
through New York was preached. Cen :
raj Bates at that time reported that
My about one-fifth of the men at Mon /
aux Point were in condition to march .
trough New York. General Miles said
his seemed to him to be remarkable, :
s there was no yellow fever at the
ONT, and he thought the men certainly
ught not to have the malaria He =
lade an inquiry into the beef about :
.hlch there had been SO much COM \
laint. 1
Did you report. this matter at the !,
y !,
ce2" asked Colonel Davis y
General Miles leaned forward, draw
lg his brows to furrow, and replied ~
)rcefully: v
L am not required, sir to report to e
he commissary general b
We'll, did you report is to the secre- c
Try of WARP" asked Colonel Davis. \
General Miles in reply, went at some Il
myth into an explanation into the rou- il
Of
ny he preferred to conclude his in II
liry so that he might have something n
lngible to present to the secretary. a
CAUSE OF DELAY.
Colonel Davis put a number of aues- ~
ons as to why the commanding gen n
al had delayed definite action in the "
eef matter and General Miles respond
that he had delayed because he did :,
1t want to act until he had secured II
lie very best authority and informa- ~
on from the most reliable sources y,
Finally he issued his order to Off :,
rs TO report on the quality of beef =,
Finished He did not report directly =,
the secretary of war because under
rule of 1890 the order should go from
e adjutant general to the secretary.
His attacks upon the canned and re-
igerated beef before the war commits pi
oner We're then taken up specifically. &C
)lonel Davis read the testimony of the tr
general which referred to &c
mbalmed beer and said it had been II
mt as a ''pretense of experiment.
General Miles was asked if he knew bl
hen the war began that canned beef tr
rs a part of the army rations This er
estiOn brought out a partial eXpla- til
-tion of his using the phrase "a pre- or
lse of experiment" He said he did u
t know that canned roast beef was q
,,ar+ Of ~ ,,-,,,- 7,.otio,,e. 49,, -.