The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-17
BEEF BOARD At OMAHA
Members Examined the Method of
Curing Hams.
STORIES OF THE PACKERS
OFFICERS OF SIXTEENTH IN
PANTRY ALSO TESTIFY.
Captain Cunning Said the Men Could
Not Eat the Meat and They Had
Little Else-Cans Had No Labels
and Meat Spoiled AS Soon As It
Was Opened.


Omaha, Neb., March 6.-The board of
inquiry appointed by the president to
look into the charges of General Miles,
that the beef issued during the late
war was of an inferior quality, I'M
healthy and at times ''embalmed," ar
rived this morning from Chicago, spent
the day in the city and left for Kansas
City this evening. The morning was
spent III South Omaha, where the
plants of Cudahy and Swift were in
spected and testimony taken, after
which the investigation was continued
in the courtmartial rooms at head
quarters of the department of Missouri.
At both Swift's and Cudahy's the
visitors were given every opportunity
to make a thorough inspection OF the
plants. Returning to the office at the
Cudahy plant, the board took testi-
mony for an hour The first witness
called was Albert Christian, assistant
superintendent in Cudahy's beef de-
partment. He testified as to the quail
ity of refrigerated beef sent to the
army last summer and said that no
chemicals of any sort were used to
preserve the beef.
Dr. D. c.. Aver, superintendent of the
bureau of animal industry at South
Omaha, testified to the inspection of
the animals. He stated that there We're
two inspections, the ante-mortem and
the poSt-mortem. After the poSt-mor-
tenn examination the inspector had
nothing more to do with the meat. He
did not think it would be possible for
any condemned meat to pass into the
house. The manner in which con-
demned animals are gotten rid of by
the inspector was gone into at length.
He stated that the meat could hardly
be taken out of the vat in which con-
demned meat was placed, and If 1t was
taken out of this vat it would be too
filthy to be used as food. He had no
knowledge of the use of chemicals for
the preservation of beef.
Superintendent Cameron was next
called. He stated that the meat used,
particularly for canning, were the
chucks and plates, and that the beef
was not of an inferior grade. The COM
pany furnished this same quality of
roast beef to the English army last
year and had no complaints, nor was
there ever any of the cases returned.
Boiled beef in siX-pound cans had
been furnished the English army and
navy in India. This boiled beef, he said,
was the same thing as the roast beef.
The only difference is in the label
INSPECTED HAMS.
After leaving Cudahy's, the party
took the ambulances and drove to the
Swift plant, where the department in
which the hams are cured was thor
oughly inspected. DR.. Christine o.
Philadelphia had testified that while
here he had been shown through the
Swift plant and saw some sort of d
liquid being injected into the meat.
Thomas Adams, foreman of the de-
partment, was called, and testified that
the operation was one having reference
to the curing of hams and was not used
in beef at any time. The liquid in
jected was saltpetre and water and it's
only purpose was to cure the ham more
quickly.
The man who shows the visitors
through the house was next called and
stated that he had shown DR.. Chris
tine through on his visit here and that
the operation as witnessed by the board
was the same witnessed by the doctor.
After hearing this testimony the
board adjourned and came to Omaha.
After lunch it reconvened at the army
headquarters and heard the testimony
of soldiers who had been through the
campaign at Santiago.
CAPTAIN DUNNING TESTIFIES.
Captain S. w. Dunning, of the Six
tenth infantry, said that after their
arrival at Santiago the men complained
that they could not eat the meat and
did not like it They said the meat
spoiled as soon as opened. He was not
prepared to say whether any sickness
occurred by reason of the use of the
canned beef. Complaints of refrigerator
beef were that it was spoiled and the
quartermasteTs were loath to take it.
His command was insufiiciently ra-
toned from July until it left Cuba.
The rationS consisted of beef, hard
bread, coffee and sugar, and when the
beef was not used it left them short.
insufficient transportation caused part
of this shortage. On the voyage back
from Cuba. canned beef was not eaten
at all by the troops. The cans of beef
he saw in Cuba had no labels on. They
came from the box in that condition.
Captain w. H. Beck, acting inspector
general of the department of the Mis-
souri,. said the canned beef used on the
voyage to Cuba was new ration to
him. The men said the beef nausedted
them. They used other things with it
in an attempt to improve it. Some of
the meat was soft and presented an
unsightly appearance. The men want
ed to exchange it for bacon, but could
not do so because they were in advance
of their supplies. The first supply of
refrigerator beef was remarked upon
favorably. Personally he thought it
fine Later quantity of it was found
to be spoiled, which was attributed to
the exposure. Because some of the
meat was in a bad condition, companies
did not get their full rations. He said
that he would not attribute the ILL
health of the troops directly to the use
of the beef. He had no reason to be-
lieve that any Of the beef had been
treated chemically.
First Lieutenant Isaac Irwin, Ser
geant Albert T. Kase, Quartermaster
Sergeant John McGriffin and Sergeant
j ohm P. Diehle, all of the Sixteenth in
fantry, followed with testimony SINH
lar to that already given. They agreed
that the canned beef was almost uni
versally bad, at first the refrigerator
beef was very fine, but spoiled later.
The board went into executive session
to outline some work which it will have
to do on it's return to Chicago, and to
prepare a list of witnesses which it will
call at the next session in that city
This closed the work the board had be-
fore it in Omaha and this evening it
left for Kansas City.