The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-02
MEN PICKED OUT THE MEAT.
GOOD GUEssES AS TO WHAT THEY
HAD IN THE FIELD.

serted That Very Little Extract
Was Taken Out.
Washington, March 1.-The court of in
quiry into the beef charges held a long
session to-day examining officers and en-,
listed men and representatives of Western
meat firms.
The meat packers representatives gave
practically the same testimony they haa
previously presented to the war investi
cation commission, but it is understood
that this is, only to get their general state
ment on the court record and that their
examination to-day will be followed by
much more detailed examination into spe-
cific incidents connected with meat fur
nished in Cuba and Porto Rico during the
war.
Maj. Jesse Lee, who has attended the
court for some days, 1t being generally I'M
derstcod that he was present in behalf of
Gen. Miles, appeared to-day, taking notes
and formulating questions. He was al
lowed to question the men of his own reg
iment, but his questions to other witnesses
were taken under advisement by the court,
and it was understood a decision will be
reached tomorrow as to Mai Lees stand
ing before the court
Fed 1t to Cuban Troops.
Col. Gallagher of the subsistence depart
ment, who was at Santiago, testified that
when complaints began to come in from
the front against the canned roast beef
bacon was substituted as far as possible
There were large supplies of canned
roast, Col. Gallagher said, but it was fed
to the Cuban troops, and Santiago refu-
gees, who preferred it to bacon As there
were more Cubans and refugees to be fed
than there were soldiers the canned roast
did not go amiss.
AS soon as the army moved into Santi-
ago Col. Gallagher began the issue of re-
frigerated beef, under Col. Weston's direc-
ton. There were some complaints here as
to the refrigerated beef and about 1000
pounds were condemned to the knowledge
of the witness.
His only previous experience with refrig-
Grated beef had been at Camp Thomas,
Chickamauga, where there was no COM
plant. The beef issued at Santiago was
as good as he had ever seen before. He
had no reason to believe that any of the
refrigerated beef he had seen had been
chemically treated in any way.
Beef in the Hospitals.
Maj John Guthrie Fifteenth Infantry,
who was with his regiment in the Santi-
ago campaign, was then called. He was
wounded during the assault on the Span
ish lines, and spent some time in the hospi-
tai at Siboney He said he had a can of
roast beef with him the night before the
fight, and ate it with relish. 1t was not
t,1,In IxAf I'D
but il was wholesome. While he was in
the hospital at Siboney he saw the meat
used in stews, camps and other ways. He
was too fevered to eat il himself, but he
saw other officers eat it with relish.
DIR. w. C. Borden then reported on the
beef experiment tried on the enlisted men
yesterday. DR.. Borden said in preparing
the various sorts of meats yesterday, one
plate of stew was from canned meat that
had gone to Porto Rico and back. One
was of canned beef bought in open mar
ket. A third was of fresh beef bought
in the market here and boiled thoroughly,
while the fourth was of fresh beef par
boiled eight minutes and subsequently
roasted half an hour. The latter was the
way in which the packing houses said
their canned roast beef was prepared Four
other plates of the same variety of meat
were served cold.
Men Made GOOD GuesSes.
AS result of the rest four of the en-
listed men picked out the Porto Rico cam
ed beef as what they had eaten in Cuba
Two selected the canned meat bought in
open market Two picked out the fresh
beef which had been simply boiled. OF the
cold meat two men picked the Porto Ri
can canned beef, four the canned beef
bought in open market and two the boiled
fresh beef. None of them picked out the
fresh beef boiled and roasted according
to the packing house receipt.
Maj. George H. Sands of the engineer
corps, testified that his experience with
the canned roast beef had been rather
more limited than that of some of the
other officers who testified but said that
on the whole it proved a satisfactory ra-
ton. The refrigerated beef received at his
camp usually had to be trimmed before
using, but lost little weight in this way
and was generally satisfactory.
Beef Men Get in a Word.
Arthur Meeker, general manager for
Armour e. Co., described in a general way
and at length the process of purchasing,
slaughtering and packing meats prepared
by his firm. The recital was Identical In
detail with the testimony given by all the
packing house representatives to the war
investiga ton commission.
Col. Davis then turned to the chemical
phase of the inquiry and asked:
what agent do you depend on for the
preservation of dressed beef?'
"cold air." the witness replied; "abso-
lutely nothing else"
Regarding canned roast beef witness
said there was no distinction between the
packing cattle and those for refrigerating
except that the Gamers and packers were
leaner, so as not to get so much fat in the
can. The leanest part of the carcass was
selected for packing.
Very Little Beef Extract.
Witness said his company turned out
about 100000 pounds of canned meats
last year. The only by-product Of the can
ned beef was the water in which the meat
was boiled, which furnished IAN infinitesi-
NAL amount of beef extract"
Pressed to say how much beef extract
would be made In packing a hundred
pounds of beef. witness pleaded ignorance
of exact figures. adding that Il was i'm
possible to extract more than one and one
half or two per cent of nutriment bofll-
ing meat. He said In this connection that
the beef extract business done by his com
many wac fpoou ofdQra HE