The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-05
Army Beef Board Rejects Some In
teresting Testimony.
EMBALMED BEEF STORY
INTENDED FOR PORTO RICO,
BUT WENT TO JACKSONVILLE.
Cook In Colonel Bryan's Regiment
Said It Made All the Men Sick
Witness Not Permitted to Testify
Because the Board Did Not Know
Eim-Canned Beef For Cubans.

It's weeks work with half days ses-
sion today. having exhausted its list OF
Witnesses now on hand. There may
be some witnesses at the Monday ses-
sion, but the court will start for Chi
cago early next week, probably on
Tuesday of Wednesday.
Just before the close of the session
today a volunteer witness presented
himself, but was not accepted He
wore an army uniform, and said his
name was Frank Rundas, late of the
Third Nebraska Colonel w. j. Bryan
regimenD, and that he had recently
been honorably discharged from the
service, and was on his way home. HIS
story was. in brief, that he had served
in the company kitchen with his COM
mand in jacksonville and that during
a long period when the men were nv
ing on refrigerator beef there was SO
much internal trouble among the men
that the issue of this was stopped. AT
another time he got hold of some re-
frigerator meat in the kitchen that was
OF such a peculiar color that the atten-
ton of the company officers was called
to it, The surgeon in charge examined
it, so Rundas alleged, and remarked
that the meat was all right, but .a2a
been prepared to send 20 Porto Rlco,
had as well use it.
The meat was cooked, but all the men
who ate ii were made sick The inter-
ence drawn was that this was some Of
the same Porto Rico beef that DR.. Daily
had analysed and alleged TO be caemi-
cally treated. Rundas said he was an
his way home, but had stopped off in
Washington to offer this information to
the court of inquiry, if it thought 1t
worth hearing. He presented himself
to Colonel Davis, the recorder of Tie
court, but was told that he would not
be wanted as a witness.
On being asked soon afterWard
whether Rundas was to be called. or
why he had been rejected, Colonel
Davis said: I know nothing about the
man. He has on q uniform, but that
is no proof that he is a soldier or ever
has been. There are all sorts of cranks
and imposterS who come uD here ana
want to testify. AS to this man, if he
can identify himself and the court d.
reefs me TO cali him, l will do So"
The counsel for General Miles will
inquire into the antecedents OF this
man, and if he appears to be what he
represents, he will be called.
CANNED BEEF FOR CUBANS.
Colonel Gallagher, who was recalled.
in answer 10 a question from Major
Lee as TO whether he had issued canned
beef to the Cuban refugees because our
soldiers would not eat it, replied:
We issued the canned beef to the
Cubans because they preferred that.
We were trying our best to give every
one what they most preferred
''Umph!" commented Major Lee.
Louis D. Hunter of the Sixth Massa-
chusetts, and regimental conlmissary
while in Porto Rico, said his experience
with both the canned and refrigerator
beef on the whole has been quite sat
isfactory. Some of the canned beef was
condemned, but the percentage was
small. There had been considerable ma
tive beef issued at. times, but on one
occasion the quantity had been cut
down on the advice of the surgeon. The
men liked the native beef, which was
well Favored. but very tough. Lieuten
ant Hunter said the men ate a large
amount OF native fruit, and bananas,
article of food. Probably , per cent of
the sickness was due to fruit.
Cross examined, witness said the men
did not use over 8 per cent of the
canned beef after reaching Porto Rico.
They traded the rest to the native
storekeepers. On the march he had
seen many men throw away the beee.
after making one meal out of the can.
or else give it to the natives. Witness
had been made sick, as he supposed, by
eating canned beef. His general health
was good.
Major George w. Ruthers of the
commissary department, who had sup
piled the Seventh army corps with re-
frigerated beef while at Jacksonville,
said he had never received a complaint.
The meat mad been risidly inspected,
and showed no evidence of cuts or
punctures, or anything else that might
give rise to the suspicion that il had
been chemically treated. All Jackson
vile he had issued q general circular
TO the Seventh army corps, calling at
tention to the fact thai beef or veg
etables furnished and not coming TO
specifications were to be returned TO
the cOmmiSSary Offices issuing them.
even if the defect was not discovered
until the food reached the company
camp.
HAD RECEIVED COMPLAINTS.
Major Lee took up the cross examin-
alton and developed the fact that there
had at times been complaints az to the
beef, and that in one case 500 pounds
of beef had been condemned. Witness
said he had three official complaints
of the beef at Jacksonville.
Il understood you to say" said Ma
5or Lee, that you had never had a
single complaint as 10 the refrigerator
beef. If l am wrong l would like to
be corrected
You are, sir replied the witness.
What / said was that | had handled
1,020, 900 pounds of refrigerator beef at
Savannah without any complaint. The
complaints were made at Jacksonville"
Lieutenant Colonel Curtis Guild of
Boston. who was attached to General
FYtZhugh Lees staff as inspector gem
eraI Of the Seventh army corps, said
in opening that he had already been
before the war investigating commits
sion and had made two very careful
reports on the subject. one by order of
Inspector General Breckenridge, both of
which were on file in the war depart
nent He submitted to the court that
these reports, being accurately COM
piled from official data, would be bet
ter evidence than he could give off
hand.
I'VE win. of course, call for your Of
fetal report to the war department"
said Colonel Davis. But" he added,
very positively, your testimony before
the war commission will, of course, not
be available for US"
CONDEMNED CANNED BEEF.
witness said his experience at jack
sonville had been very satisfactory. He
had personally inspected many cars,
finding very few sides of beef to the
whole of which any exception could be
taken. Of the canned roast beef he
had unofficially condemned $1,000
pounds. which had been trans-shipped
from New Orleans before it was deliv-
cred to the army in Jacksonville. He
explained that q large shipment Of
canned roast beef had arrived at Jack
sonvine in very offensive condition. He
had picked out offensive smelling cases,
amounting to $4,000 pounds, and called
in the Jacksonville health officer, who
condemned it as public nuisance. thus
giving him the right to destroy it at