The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-04-09
POWELL AND HIS PROCESS.
HIS METHOD OF PRESERVING MEAT
A PROFOUND SECRET.

But He Declared He Used 40 Boric or
snlyciIIe Acid-Was Tried on One
Car OF ArmOur's Ment-NOt at All
Like EmbaIming-COOk of second
| New Jersey says Meat Was Bad.
Miles other Witnesses Will Not BE
Summoned.
| Washington, April s.-John Rusche Of
EngIewood, n. j., cook for the Second
| New Jersey Regiment, while at Jackson
vile, opened the testimony in the army
| beef inquiry to-day.
| He declared that IL was common talk
among the soldiers that all the meat sent
! South was embalmed. The story became
| prevalent, and the men refused to eat the
meat, which, he testified, was rotten
| often Shiny in appearance, and there
were frequent complaints that it made
the men sick"
After frying it, it tasted like straw and
had peculiar smell, as if decayed
Mr.. Alexander b. Powell of New York.
the proprietor OF the Powell beef preserV-
alive process, followed Rusche on the
stand He exclaimed at some length that
| lie was the sole owner of the Powell pro-
cess for preserving fresh meats without
the use of ice, that the formula was a
secret, and that it was not patented, be-
cause so eminently simple He declared
emphatically that neither boric or salycllic
| acid was used in the process, nor, he ad-
| ded, lis there any injection or Immersion
! in chemicals. The process is applied by
| fumigation."
Used on n Car of ArmOur's Beef.
Mr.. Powell then gave the particulars of
| his treatment of a carload of Armour's
| beef which was sent 10 Tampa in the
| spring of 1895 When he heard that the con-
tract was to be given by the government
he had reached the conclusion that the
| government ought to have the use of the
| process and he had written TO the Presi-
! dent. to Gen. Niles and TO Gen. Eagan
asking where he should apply to have the
| process used.
| Gen. Eagan had replied saying the de-
| partment was not engaged In purchasing
| any process, but that it could only deal
with those who would supply the meat
and guarantee that 1t should keep. He said
| the process was applied to a car of six
| carcasses of beef a Chicago owned by
| Armour & Co. He had made the arrange
ment with Mr.. Connors, the superutend
! ent of Armour & Co., arguing that they
! should have the preference in the use of
| the process for the use Of the government.
| These carcasses were taken 10 Tampa the
! latter part of May last and Coz Weston
secured four of the carcasses, exposing
them in the sun Tor about eighty hours,
1t was after this exposure that Col. Wes-
| ion, of the eonlmissary department, made
his report, which was commendatory.
lie said later that not to his knowledge
| had Armour & Co. used the process during
the war; nor had it ever been used by any
| one except himself There were, however,
| other beef preseryatve processes in the
| market.
Is Not Like EmbniminG.
| Does your process resemble the en-
! balming process at all?" asked Maj. Lee.
l. Not in the least replied Mr.. Powell,
2'but-L see no reason why it could moi be
| so used and why human bodies could not
be preserved by its use. However. there
| is no resemblance 10 the embalming pro-
| cess"
Mr. Powell said he had known of hotels
in which beef prepared by him had been
used for the past five years and in which
it gave the best satisfaction. He had been
| shipping to the Comte du Barry for ten
/ years, and he would have no other beef.
He had only a verbal contract with Ar
mour & Co. but the understanding was
that if that firm got the contract they
were to have the exclusive control of the
| process during the continuance of that
| contract only. He was to have SO cents
per 100 for its use, about 500 per carload
He had not attempted 10 make any ar
rangement with Swift & Co., the success
full bidders at the time. but after the bat
tie of Santiago he had written to Mr.
Swift on the subject, furnishing him a
| piece of beef that had been treated Moth
/ ing, however had come of IL.
Mr.. Powell said he made no claim that
his process would not discolor beeG. Any
| process would cause change IN appear
ance After the use of his proc asS beef
would look like meat that had been in
cod storage for about two weeks. darken-
! ing the grain and bleaching the fat. rhere
would Re a smell of sulphur for an hour
as sulphur WAS one of the articles used in
fumigat!on.
Could Not Keep 1t ~ Hours.
He considered il impossible 10 keep fresh
meat for seventy-two hours after leaving
a preservatlve process, and he was of the
opinion that any agreement to keep il so
long in the climate of Cuba after taking il
out of the refrigerato~ must Involve some
| preservative process. He thought if thor
| oughly frozen it would keep from twelve
TO twenty hours and not longer,
Capt. George b. Davis, who was CD
| Eagan's principal assistant in the commits
! sary generals department, made brief
statement in response to Mr.. DeCaindry.
| He said that his charge of the files of
! the commissary generals office was only
| perfuntory aud that he had a search made
for the memoranda which Mr. DeCaindry
had reported as missing, and had found
one of them. He had never removed any
| papers from the files.
The reading of the reports of officers
was then proceeded with by Mai Lee.
They were of the same tenor as those
| read yesterday
CO... Davis announced al the beginning
of the afternoon session that the court
had decided to adhere to its former de-
| csion to summon only such of the add
tional Witnesses suggested by Gen. Miles
as could give testimony upon points not
already covered by the inquiry.
After the reading of additional reports,
| the board adjourned until Monday
BURIAL OF WALKER FEARON.