The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-03-23
! don't know that Il did"

| In connection with your duty, Office Of
the health department. what have you
found to be the practice among the hutch
ers of Chicago as to the use of preserya
tlves?'
They don't use personalities very
much; for certain classes &c meat they use
| some preservatives; in fresh beef there
is not much use for preservatives, Meat
| that has been kept for time and b en-
| exposed once or twice becomes slightly
| tainted. and that faint Is frequently re-
moved with bicarbonatc Of soda and coma-
times by dipping pieces OF meat into a hot
solution and then placing 1t Immediately
| back in the refrigerator hot solution
of boracic acid, which simply coats the
outside. will remove the taint from meat.
| General Davis-ln what quantities did
| you find chloride of sodium and saltpeter
: in the canned beef you examined?
| II did not make a minute analysis, but
! there was large amount. more than OF
| dinarily used in cooking
| DR.. Murdoch. in reply to que0ons by
| Major Lee, said: II can see how coating
| of some preventative could delay the faint
ing Of the outside of the meat If IL was
| exposed to the sunshine in moist climate
| and low altitude. II something of that
kind is not used can not see how meat
| can be kept any length of time in a moist
! climate And IL that outside coat was cut
away 1t would not affect the value of the
meat as ration"
| How long would refrigerated beef that
had been refrigerated a considerable
| length of time keep, after it had been re-
moved from the refrigerator in hot eli
mate and low altitude without any arti-
! fetal coating?"
! MY opinion is that IT could not keep
more than a few hours. six or eight
| Have you ever found horse flesh put
up in cans and sold On the market here
| in Chicago?"
| Not put up in cans but ! have had
samples brought to me purportin1 to be
! fresh beef from the market and have
| found some of these samples to be horse
! flesh instead of beef. ! have no means OF
| Knowing whence they came. An invcstiga-
tion with that result once led the health
| department to suppress an establishment
! in the outskirts of Chicago
| William j. Griffin, sergeant company +,
| acting sergeant major OF the Second bat
! talon, testified that at Jacksonville the
refrigerated beef had to be frequently re-
| jected it looked good, but when ca, upen
| it had peculiar odor. nauseous steach.
| On one occasion a fresh beef stew IVES
| served and Immediately thereafter ,he en-
! tire company was taken violently i'll With
| diarrhoea. For two weeks ahetward,
! thirty seven men out OF the company was
the maximum ut for duty Within SIX
| weeks several died and although ,he r4-
/
| ness said he knew that the sickness from
this meat was what killed them.
! DIR. John G. Burns of Chicago, who was
| assistant surgeon of the SesAld llliapis
| volunteers while the regiment was at
! Jacksonville, stated that ~ bad fo:-
/ demned tine refrigerated pee, several times
| before it left the wagon which brought Il.
! He had also returned some &c II TO the
cars. telling the agent Of Swift & Co that
| he could not use 1t. He had refused The
| meat seven times in one month on account
Of the bad odor and bad taste. The men
| complained bitterly that they could rot
eat 1t.
First Lieutenant Hedkn of the Ts.rd
! cavalry testified that the princlnal i.eat
ration in Cuba was refrigerated beef. The
complaint was that it was rotten.
| w. a. Robinson, travelling represent
| ative of the chemical firm of Charles e.
flzer d Co. of New York testified ihet lie
formerly had solicited orders ana sold
chemicals to the packing trade. The Wit
ness said 1t was within his knowledge tLat
his hrm sells TO packing houses lFrge
quantities of boracic acid and other
chemicals. but that so far rs he kncNs
! such chemicals were never applied TO fresh
beef; they were used for export porl
Horace c. Gardner OF Swift G. Co. gave
| a detailed list of the various chemI, Is
used in the different departments tl that
|
frigerated beef department 20 chemicals
OF any kind are used and that he never
heard OF salicylic acid being used IN tle
premises for any purposes.
a. G. Manns, the chemist OF Armour x
Co.. testified that a large number of
chemicals were used In tho manufacturing
department, but none in the packing house
except borax and boracic acid, which were
used in packing some goods for the for
eign markets The witness stated that the
refrigerated beef sent to the army was
shipped in the usual way and that no
chemicals were used on It,
In reply to Colonel Davis the witness
said he had seen what is called "preserya =
tine" and also analysed it. Its main in
gredeut was borax and 1t was used for
preserving vegetables, milk, cheese. but
ter. etc.
John Bierma, private in company T.,
First Illinois volunteers, testified NEXT
In all cases. he said the men in his bat
talon refused TO eat the canned roast beef
unless absolutely driven to IT, They said
it was unpalatable. their stomachs rebelIed
against 1t. and they were attacked with
vomiting after eating IT,
In Porto Rico the men very seldom ate
the canned beef while their money lasted.
The surgeon told the men that the re-
frigerated beef was unfit to eat and he
could do nothing with his medicines so
long as they were compelled TO eat it. lie
also condemned the canned beef
W. Clark Marshal said he had been n
specialist in meat provisions since 1913,
although he had not been In any OF the
establishments in seven or eight years.
Please explain the nature and charac-
ter Of your experiment in regard TO can
ned meats, mere particularly canned roast
beef so-called," said Major Lee
Il have investigated and experimental
IN the matters since 1893. The process OF
canning meat to-day rcbs the meat Ct all
its nutrition leaving nothing but fibre Eat
and gelatine In the can. ! consider it en-
tirely unfit for human food. The govern
ment chemist describes It as a mass Of
insoluble matter. IL the packing houses
this mass of matter would come under the
head Of tankage and would be used as o
fertilizer There are thousands OF experi-
ments In all colleges. known to all scient.
lists TO show that animals fed with u VIII
starve TO death. Canned corued heef--
Colonel Davis--I object to any testimony
from this witness which does not relate
strictly 10 objects Of the inquiry
Major Lee-I believe thai at tnls time
the questions the recorder has asked mas
| not gone outside of the Inquiry. WISH