Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1899-05-11

was less desirable than the coined
beef; that bacon would have been
more suitable and fit than the UNI
known and unfamiliar canned roast
beef eaten direct from the can, and be-
lieves that there was no better food
available or procurable than refriger-
ator beef.
| The opinion is expressed that it
would have been impossible to land
beef cattle on the hoof in Cuba.
Exonerates Packers.
An instruction of the president to
the court was, IF the packers of the
country are guilty, it must be known
4 Replying to this direction the court
says:
"The methods of packing the canned
beef were the same as those habitual-
ly employed in the preparation of the
meat as an article of commerce, and
the court does not find that they un-
derwent any change during the prog
ress of the war. The large purchases
for the use of the military forces dur
ing the months of May and June, 1898,
were made-not at the solicitation of
the packers, or in consequence of eff
forts put forth by them for that pur-
pose-but by the order and upon the
initiative of the commissary general OF
subsistence, such purchases being
made in every case by officers of his
department in the usual manner"
On another point connected with the
packers the court said:
ut appears from the testimony that
whenever any cans have been found to
be defective subsequent to their orig
inal delivery to the subsistence depart
ment, such cans have been replaced in
every instance"
Replying specifically to other ques-
tions set out by the president, the
court says:
'"That the canned beef was described
as fresh because it was not sailed, but
that the meat was not old or stale.
"That the refrigerated beef fur
nished the army was not 'doctored or
treated with any other agency than
cold air.
"That the meat purchased for the
army was the meat of commerce.;
that both kinds-refrigerated and
canned-were such as is we'll known in
both hemispheres as commercial prod
ucts of which there is and has been
very large consumption not only by
the trade generally, but by the United
States navy and by the armies and ma
vies of Europe.
"That no report of unfitness or UNI
suitability of the beef We're forwarded
to the war department until more than
one month after hostilities ceased.
THAT barring some defects in meth
DDS of inspecting the beef on it's deliv-
cry to the subsistence department the
- % in chinynanf
was due to the fault of no one
Report of Courts Chemists.
Summing up the result of the exam
nations of the chemists employed by
the court, the report says:
1.-The contents of all the cases, which
consisted of boiled rather than roast
beef, were found to be perfectly sweet,
with an odor of cooked meat. The
beef in nearly all the cans appeared to
have been softened by exposure to
heat, but apparently without injurious
effect as to it's quality. Apart from
this the meat contents were found to
be in good state of preservation in
every case. No trace of preservative
acids were found in any of the cans.
There is no testimony to the
effect that any of the canned fresh
beef supplied to the subsistence de-
partment since April 25. 1898, has been
chemically treated or subjected to the
action of preservatives of any kind
save small quantity of common salt
that had been added as seasoning to
the product of certain packers.
"In no case did the number OF
swelled or tainted cans discovered
greatly exceed in amount of per cent
of the entire number examined"
Several pages of the report are de-
voted to the consideration of the al
legation made by General Miles that
the refrigerated beef was treated with
preservatives, but the statement is
made upon the threshold of this
question that but little testimony was
submitted by him in support of this
contention"
Considerable attention is given to
DIR. Daly's testimony concerning the
refrigerated beef on the transport
Panama and also to his report con-
corning the beef supplied to the inn
munes stationed at Chickamauga.
| Regarding this the court says:
"The testimony shows that the beef
treated by the Powell process, which
was declared by DIR. Daily to contain
boric and salicylic acids, was, in fact,
treated by fumigation, and the ma
terials employed contained neither
boric nor salicylic acids"
| AS to the cause of the sickness in the
army in the Santiago campaign, the
court finds it impossible to include
that either the canned fresh beef or
refrigerated beef appeared to any app
probable extent as causes of intestinal
diseases"
Speaking of the ration as whole
the court says:
Not Good Tropical Ration.
"As to the effects Of the food supply,
having regard to both sufficiency and
quality. 1t seems to be clearly established
out modification to the troops serving in
the West 1ndies was by no means we'll
adapted for use in tropical climate.
If this be true. the untitness of the ration
should have manifested itself by it's fail
ure to keep the troops, who subsisted up
on IT. in the best possible condition for
service in hot climates. This, in the
opinion OF the court, is fully established
In the evidence. The insufiiciency of the
food supply in Cuba and the irregularity
marily to a marked deficiency in trans
portation facilities and the condition of
the weather and the roads, appeared, to
some extent as causes of disease among
| the troops who We're thus insufficiently
and irregularly subsisted.'
Inc conclusion of the court, adverse to
further proceedings based upon the
charges. is as follows:
1T has been developed in the course of
the inquiry as recited in this report, that
IN some Instances, some individuals failed
| to perform the full measure of duty or to
observe the prophecies which dignity high