The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-03-03
VOLUNTEERS ON THE STAND
Condemned the Canned Product In Terms
That We're UnmiStakable.
PROCESS OF EMsALMING BEEF
DR.. Christine Testified That He Did Not
Know That Chemicals fof Pre-
serving Meat Were Injected
at the Packing Houses.

Washington, March 2.-There were several
interesting developments in the court of In
quiry today. 1t was a field day for he
room being filed all day with members
of the various volunteer regiments which
served in Cuba and Porto Rico. The first
of these, Clarence Walters, of the First
volunteer engineers, told sensational story
of hardship and inhumanity suffered during
his service. described the canned roast beef
in harsher terms than ever before been APP
piled to that much-discussed article
Later In the day, Lieutenant Sewell, U. S.
A, who was major of the volunteer bat
TALON in which Walters served, contradcted
his story completely, saying there was no
canned roast beef aboard the transport
which took the command to Porto Rico.
Further than that he said Walters had
come to him after landing and asked to be
discharged so to accept a position as
newspaper correspondent and on being
questioned said that he had been we'll
treated while in the service and had no
complaint to make.
An important development was the de-
NAL of a story by one James Farnan and
also attributed to DR.. Maxwell Christine, of
Philadelphia, that they had seen beef in
jected with chemicals in an Omaha packing
house.
DR.. Christine explained that what he had
seen was the picking of corned meats,
brine being injected into the meat, to save
several weeks time in the picking vat.
The war department court held long ex-
ecutive session before beginning the ex-
aiming of any witnesses today.
The testimony of Clarence Walters, of the
First volunteer engineers of New York, was
rather sensational. He was apparently
well-educated and intelligent, evidently a
man of the world, and gave his testimony
clearly and calmly, but with positive direct
ness.
He was asked what his experience with
canned beef had been on the voyage of his
transport to Porto Rico and replied that the
first can he saw opened had worms in 1t
and few minutes after being opened de-
veloped such a putrid odor that 1t was
impossible to have 1t about He ate some
of it and was made violently i'll. He said
he had been on sea trips before and was
never sea sick.
Complained of the Meat
The men of his company complained of
the meat The commssary sergeant re-
fused to accept it. Some of the meat was
given to the surgeon-major who tasted it
and said 1t was all right. The sergeant
commissary was compelled to accept It,
but did SO under protest. Nearly all the
men of his battalion were sick throughout
most of the voyage a result of eating
this meat
Colonel Davis, the recorder, ordered a
can opened and asked the witness If 1t was
the same he had used in the service. Wit
ness said 1t bore no resemblance to the
campaign article. The cans he had seen
were different form, keystone shape, and
the color, consistency and odor of the con-
tents were entirely different. A second can
was opened for inspection with the same
result. Witness did not recognize it.
The commissary-sergeant of his company
was George Taylor, of Sc Pine street, New
York, since made lieutenant.
Capt. Hicks Description.
Captain Herbert O. Hicks description of
the meat did not make it out quite SO re-
pulsive as that served to Walters in Porto
Rico, but he said 1t was "a Shiny stringy
mess, nauseating to the taste, without nu-
triment and without form that could be
recognized as meat except by the melted
fat with which it was soaked"
Lieutenant George Taylor, Sixth Massa-
chusetts, said his regiment served in Porto
Rico. They had very little that they could
eat on the trip down. They, at times, had
bacon but no chance to cook 1t and had to
throw 1t overheard. They had canned
roast beef which they could not eat and
had frequently only canned tomatoes, hard
tack and coffee. Asked If he thought any
sickness In his command was caused by
the food the men had to eat he replied:
81 think was more due to what we did
not have to eat When we got to Porto
Rico there were thirty of our men so sick
they were never landed"
"Was this state of underfeeding general
aboard the transport" asked Colonel
Davis.
Eyes, SIR"
mo Report Made to Miles
Colonel Davis-"General Miles was on
board. Did you report to HING
II did not think we had any right to go
over the head of our colonel. We reported
to him. 1 heard him speak to the commits
sary captain and the captain answered that
the men were getting all they would get
and probably would get a good deal less
when they got on shore. That was all
ever heard of the report"
M C. Dwyer, Ninth Massachusetts, vol
unteers, said that some Of the canned roast
"a ~ n