The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-01-04
Miles Curt Response to Eagan's Let
ter of Inquiry.
EAGAN WANTED TO KNOW
TOOK EXCEPTIONS TO A PUB
LISHED INTERVIEW.
Informed That He May Secure a
Copy of Miles Testimony In Due
Time - Beef Contractors Deny
Miles Charges-Board of Survey
Commences Investigation

Washington, Jan. 2.-Commissary
General Eagan, late in the afternoon,
gave out for publication some CORE
spondence relative to the criticisms
passed by General Miles upon the
quality of the meat supplied to the
army during the war.
First is a letter from Major Black,
who was General Miles commissary Of
ficer during the Puerto Rican cam
paign. In view of the regulations for
bidding the destruction or condemna-
ton of any supplies, except upon the
finding of properly constituted board
of survey, he was asked as to the cor
rectnesS Of a statement attributed TO
General Miles, that 100000 pounds of
canned beef had been condemned in
Puerto Rico.
His reply was as follows: Replying
TO your communication Of Dec. 81, rela-
tive to board of survey l have the
honor to state that 1 find no report OF
boards of survey on refrigerated beer
or timed roast beef among my papers.
The last of the letter relates to the
issue raised between General Miles and
General Eagan as 10 the authorship of
a certain newspaper criticism upon the
army supplies, and included General
Eagans letter and General Miles re-
ply, as follows:
1.-THE Adiutant General of the Army:
General enclose herewith an ar
ticle from the New York Journal, dated
New York. Friday. Dec % 1898, headed
Miles Makes Grave Charges Against
the Administration Used in
Beef Made the Soldiers Ill-Tons Of
Bad Meat Sent to the Troops in Puerto
Rico
IN view of the grave charges made
in this purported interview with Gen
eral Nelson a. Miles, 1 have the honor
to ask that this article be referred to
General Miles, to ascertain if the
statements therein made and attributed
to him are correct, or to what extent
they are correct, and that he may be
directed to state in detail whether he
is correctly quoted, and in what partic-
ulars he is correctly or incorrectly
quoted.
Very respectfully yours,
CHARLES p. EAGAN,
''Commissary General of Subsistence"
This letter bears the following en-
dorsement:
Headquarters of the Army,
Washington, D. c, Dec. u, 1898.
Respectfully returned. 1 have re-
peatedly refused to be interviewed or
to comment on or discuss my teSti-
mony. When a proof is furnished me
and corrected and examined. l presume
the commisSary general can obtain a
copy. This subject has been referred
to the inspector general of the army,
with directions to make q thorough and
rigid investigation of the whole mat
ter. and the commissary general will
have an opportunity Of being heard.
NELSON a. MILES,
Major General Commanding"
BEEF PACKERS NOT GUILTY.
Commissary General Eagan has been
steadily prosecuting the inquiry into
the methods followed by the big meat
pdcking-Aouses 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 today he gave out for publication
letters addressed to Lieutenant Colonel
o. NJ. Smith, purchasing commissary al
Chicago. which came from all save one
of the firms who supplied the army
meat. either refrigerated or canned:
Swift & Co. say: We are slaughter
ers and shippers Of refrigerated beef,
and in all of our experience have never
used any chemicals whatsoever with re-
frigeraJed beef.
Beef shipped to Santiago de Cuba and
to Puerto Rico. and to various United
States camps has been handled in eX-
actly the same way as that used to
supply our various branch houses at
different cities and towns in the United
States and England, with which any
one can become familiar by visiting
branch houses and slaughtering
plants
Libby, Mcneil & Libby: IN reply to
your letter of the 9th, in regard to the
roast beef, we first commenced packing ]
ii twenty-five years ago. 1t is sold by
all the wholesale grocers and retailers. /
ard used by the mass Of people-eSpec- |
tally in mining camps.
Answering your question in regard /
to foreign ingredients and scraps being I
Used in putting up this meat. viii say
we use nothing but good. wholesome, /
sound, government-inspected meat. and /
no scraps of any description are used. /
The fat in our can is part of. and be- I
longs to the beef which is packed in :
the can. There is none poured in
BOARD OF SURVEY.
The board of survey appointed by the /
secretary OF war TO examine into and /
report on the responsibility Tor the loss /
OF 100000 pounds of refrigerated beer OF /
Swift q Co, which was rejected by /
General Miles upon its arrival at Ponce, I
Puerto Rico. and which was subse-
Quently thrown overheard. while en-
route on the return voyage, met today.
but decided that inaSmuch as the pro-
ceedings of a board of survey were sub
sect to review. they would not be made
public The board is instructed TO as
feed this beef to the troops in Puerto /
Rico and fix the responsibility in case
proper effort was not made. to ascer-
tain whether, as reported in the tesi- 1
mony before the war commission. the
beef had been chemically treated. and
whether the United States was respon-
sible for.its loss. which involves a rec
concentration as to whether Swift & Co.
Should be reimbursed.
A hoard of survey has no power to
administer oaths. 1t can only find on
information and recommend subject TO
review of the appointing officer. in this
case Secretary of War AIger. The board
will investigate the question with
which they are charged.
The general Of the army is very COM
placent over the matter. The 100000
pounds of refrigerated beef arrived at
Ponce the very day the protocol was
signed. This amount of fresh meat. it
is stated, would have furnished rations
for the American troo9s then on the
island for fifty days. But, it is alleged,
had it been landed. it could not have
been kept. There was barely enough
ice in Ponce TO supply the hospitals.
our troops, save about 900 men. were
scattered throughout the southern por-
ton OF the island. from Mayaguez to
Guanama distances varying from