Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1899-01-04
BEEF CIRERS EXPLAIN
Tell Commissary General Eagan How
They Put Up Army Meat.
USE OF CHEMICALS DENIED.
Swift & Co., Libby, Mcneil & Libby
and Nelson, Morris tS Co., Three
Chicago Firms, Detail
Their Operations.

Washington, Jan. A. Commissary
General Eagan has been steadily pros
ecuting the inquiry into methods fol-
lowed by the big meat packing houses
of putting up the meats supplied to the
army during the war. Last week he
made public a formal statement from
the Armour company, and he has now
given out for publication letters adj
dressed to Lieutenant Colonel o. M.
Smith, purchasing commissary at Chi
cago, which came from all save one of
the firms which supplied the army
meat, either refrigerated or canned.
Swift G. Co. of Chicago wrote:
Replying to your letter of the 9th
nst., we wish to state that wo do not
out up timed beef, therefore are not
able to answer your interrogations with
regard to timed beef. -"
1--WE are slaughterers and shippers of
refrigerated beef and in all of our ex
perience have never used any chemicals
whatsoever with refrigerated beef.
I'VE have made shipments of refrig
Grated beef to Santiago, Cuba, and Por-
to Rico and have supplied the United
States army during the month of De-
cember at the following Places
"Anniston and Huntsville, Ala; Knox
vile, Tenn; Savannah and Augusta.
Ga; Greenville, Somervile and Colum-
bia. S. c.
Beef shipped to Santiago, Cuba. and
Porto Rico and to various United States
camps has been handled in exactly the
same way as that used to supply our
various branch houses at different cit
toe nd i,, Witt Ctot nd
England, with which any one can be-
come familiar by visiting our branch
houses and slaughtering plants"
Another Firms Operations.
Libby, Mcneil e. Libby Of Chicago
wrote:
I'm reply to your letter Of the 9th in
regard to roast beef. we first commence
ed packing it 25 years ago. 1t is sold
by all wholesale grocers and retailers
and used by the mass of people and es-
pecially in mining camps. Large guam
titles have been consumed by the Alas
ka trade the last two years, also in
South Africa in the mining regions. We
also ship large quantities of it to our
foreign trade, and especially Scotland,
and large quantities have been used by
other governments and especially the
French army.
'In cooking the beef before putting
into cans there is naturally more or less
Juice that comes from the meat, the
same as there Is when cooking it at
your home. which is sometimes saved
and used in making soups. The beef is
not cooked for the extract.
"1n regard to the cooking Of roast
beef. we consider 1t cooked as much as
corned beef to make 1t tender, the same
as the corned beef, but 1t is done under
higher degree of heat and conse-
quently does not take as long to cook it.
Answering your question in regard
to foreign ingredients and scraps being
used in putting up this meat, will say
we use nothing but good, wholesome,
sound, government inspected beef, and
no scraps of any description are used.
The fat in our can Is part of and be-
longs to the beef which is packed in the
can There Is none poured in. We do
not handle refrigerated beef"
Nelson, Morris & Co. Of Chicago wrote
a long letter in a similar vein to both
the above.