New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-03-02
PACKERS HAVE AN INNINGS.
THEY DENY THAT ANY CHEMICALS ARE
Used on BEEF.
OFFICERS AND ENLISTED MEN ALSO TIES
TIFY BEFORE THE COURT OF INQUIRY.

che boef charges held long session to-day. examin-
ing officers and enlisted men and representatives
Of Western meat firms The packers represent"
,Ivos gave practically the same testimony they had
rraviouslv nresonted TO the War Investigating
Commission but Il ia understood that this Is only
10 get their general statement on the record OF 'o
court and that their examination To-Day VIII 10
followed by a much more detailed examination mo
specific Incidents connected with meat furnisheu III
cuba and Porto Rico during the war.
Major Jesse Lee. who has attended tic court ior
some days. II being generally understood thar ne
was present in behalf Of General Miles, appeared
again to-day taking notes and formulating queS-
tions He was allowed 10 question the men OF MS
own regiment but his questions to other witnesses
were taken under advsement. and it was under
stood that decision will be reached 'o-ihorio" ~
to his standing before the court
THE EVIDENCE IN DETAIL
Lieutenant Coonel A. l.. Smith was recalled ana
questioned as to the history OF tho beer steamer
Manitoba which was sent to Porto Rico during
his service there AS he recollected. she was en-
gagged In discharging beef about six days. Only as
much beef could be taken off each day as inc
troops could use. consequently she dld not us
charge all her meat. but she had large cargo ol
other stores which were much needed anu 'o
succeeded in getting them all off. lie supposed
her return to the States was under orders from
General Wilson but ne did not know whether or
not General Wilson knew that she was carrying
back three hundred thousand pounds or beef
Colonel Gallagher OF the Subsistence Depart
nent who was field commissary at General Shal-
ter's headquarters outside Santiago. testified that
the depot received meat. coffee hard bread ana
eugar as fast as they could be broken out or inc
holds OF the transports. and that these esSe"''"iS
were rushed to the front as fast as the transport
taton facilities would allow.
Asked If the field transportation facilities were
ADEQUATE, the witness said they would have been
t,-Gg. hut hqf hq y
ing to transport medical and quartermasters' sup
pics and wounded they were hardly adequate.
Tho landing facilities from the transports were
painfully inadequate.
Colonel Gallagher said that when complaints
began 10 come in from tho front against the
canned roast beef. bacon was substituted as far
as possible
As soon as the ARMY moved into SANTIAGO ne
began the issue OF refrigerator beef under Colonel
Wcston's direction There were some complaints
hero as to tho refrigerator beef and ABOUT Tour
thousand pounds were condemned. AS to the pro
portion OF canned beef that was found to be
spoiled. witness said he found practically none
while in Santiago. 1Ie had examined the refris-
orator beef that arrived the MASSACHUSETTS, ana
the Port Victor and It seemed good.
ASKED by Colonel Gillespie as to his personal
opinion Of canned roast beef the witness said no
had eaten Il frequently while in Cuba He did not
like It particularly. and did not think It thing
on which soldiers should be forced to live Tor
any great length Of time But as an occasional
substitute FOR fresh beef. to use. say every other
day he thought then. and still thought it was tho
best thing that could be found either In THIS couh
try or elsewhere.
Major John Guthrie 18th Infantry who was
wounded in the assault on Santiago and spent
some time in the hospital at Siboney. testified That
he had n can Of roast beef with him the night pc
fore the fight and ate It with relish. it was not
so naIatoble as some beef he had eaten, but II was
wholesome
REPORT on THE EXPERIMENT.
Dr. W G. Borden then reported on the expert
nont tried with the enlisted men yesterday lie
eald that In preparing the various sorts OF meat
one plate of stew from canned meat that had
zone To Porto Rico ana back. was canned peer
bought IN open market. third was OF fresh peer
bought I'm the market here and boiled thoroushl!'
while the fourth was OF fresh beef pdrpoHed eisHI
minutes and then roasted half an hour The latter
was the way In which the packng-houses sald
their canned roast beef was prepared. Four other
| mates OF the same variety OF meat were served
cold AS a result OF the test four OF the ehlis'eu
men picked out the Porto Rican canned beer rs
what they had eaten in Cuba. TWO selected ue
canned meat bought in open market Two picked
ont the fresh beef which had been simply boiled.
or the cold meat two men picked tho Porto Kicah
| canned beef four tho canned meat bought In open
market and two the boiled fresh beef None OF
tbono rcked out the fresh beef boiled and roasted
according to the packing house recipe
Major George II. Sands. OF the Engineer Corps
soid that his experience with the canned roast beef
! had been rather more limited than that Of some
n tho officers who had testified. but. on the whole
r. proved n satisfactory ration. The refrigerator
! beof received At his camp usually had to he
trimmed before using but lost little weight In THIS
way and was generally satisfactory. Inc sickness
| of his command in cuba he ascribed 10 malaria
| and exposure. rather than 70 insufficient or I'M
| wholesome food
PACKERS REPRESENTATIVE HEARD.
| Arthur Neeker. general manager for Armour
| Co described in n general way and at length the
! process ~ purchasing slaughterng and packing
/ meats prepared by his firm The recital was
! Identical in detail with the testimony given by
| all the packing house representatives. 10 the War
! Investigating Committee Mr. Meeker said hls
| house had been furnishing dressed beef TO United
States Army posts for seven or eight years In mo
| Spanish War they had furnished To the Govern
| ment about four million pounds.
| Colonel Davis then turned 10 the chemical phase
~ the inquiry and asked: What agent do you
depond upon for the preservation Of dressed beef!
Cold air." replied the witness; absolutely noth-
~ Srr Meeker said he knew that one Powell had
made & bi b knew a ia noRhn E Of the dsa
/ of thls experiment and none OF the oeet was sofa
10 Rsrarding canned roast beef the witness said
there was no distinction between the packing ca,1e
ners and packers we're leaner so as to not get 90
much fat in the can. rhe leanest part OF the car
| cass was selected for packing His company
turned out about seventeen million pounds or
| canned meats last year. The only by-product Of
| the canned beef was the water in which the meat
was boiled which furnished an inhnitesimal
amount OF beef extract. Pressed to say how much
beef extract would be made In packing hundred
pounds OF beef the witness pleaded ignorance OF
the exact figures. adding that scientific authorities
agreed that IL impossible to extract more than
| IL or . per cent OF nutriment by boiling meat. He
| said that the beef extract business done BY his
= company was inconslderable His firm had sold
a great many million pounds of canned roast beef
to the British Government by which 1t was used
! in India Egypt and South Africa. No complaints
had been received France had used the beef as the
regular army ration for years under "A three-year
| guarantee The Armour Company had been IN
| derbd in recent years by French Madagascar
| company. whose products came into France free
| Of duty Japan and Germany also used the canned
| meat with good results.