The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-02-21


not want to act until he had secured
The very best authority, which was in
formation from the most reliable
sources. Finally, he issued his order to
officers to report on the quality of beef
furnished. He did not report directly
to the secretary of war because, under
rule of 1890, THE order should go from
the adiutant general to the secretary
His attacks upon the canned and re-
frigerated beef before the war commits
sion were then taken up specifically
Colonel Davis read the testimony of the
comma ndfng general which referred to
'embalmed beef" and said it had been
sent as a "pretense of experiment."
General Miles was asked if he knew
when the war began that canned roast
beef was part of the army ration. This
question brought out a partial explain
alton of his using the phrase "a pre-
tense Of experiment" He said he did
not know that canned roast beef was
a part of the army rations, though in
1885 an order had been issued incud-
ing canned corned or fresh beef. He
did not understand the canned beef now
in question was meant When his at
tention was finally attracted to the
canned roast beef recentlx issued ne as
eumed, he declared, that it was being
issued as an experiment, since ft was
not understood by him that canned
roast beef was part of the regular
ration. Continuing his explanation in
answer to a question of Colonel Davis,
General Miles said he thought his use
of ''pretense of experiment. was unfor-
tunate, and he disclaimed any intention
to impute fraud to any one
AS far as indicating fraud" he said,
Il wish to state that no such inference
was intended. 1t was perhaps an un-
fortunate expression, and had my at
tention been called to it, l might have
amended it to say-well. on the theory
of an experiment AS a matter of fact,
1t was an experiment and a very costly
one"
With that disclaimer" remarked
Colonel Davis, "of course we will pass
to the refrigerated beef
Then, replying to a question, General
Miles said he first heard complaints
against the beef at Ponce. The first di-
rect statement that it had been treated
chemically came, he believed, from DR..
DAILY, who presented it late in Septem-
Der. and appeared subsequently,
before the war commission.
He said he did not recollect whether
DR.. Daly's report was volunteered or
whether he had been ordered to inves-
ttgate and report on the meat 1t was
general talk among the officers at
Ponce, General Miles continued, that
the refrigerated beef must have been
subjected to some chemical treatment,
to make it keep for ~ hours.
DR.: Daly's, however was the first
official report. General Miles then read
a long summary of 100 letters received
by him at army headquarters, giving
the various terms in which the army
meat was characterized. These in
cluded 'embalmed.'' "decomppsed," >"
injected, poisoned, ''spoiled' and
the like. +t
In addition, he showed a summary Of
reports on refrigerated beef condemned
and thrown overheard from transports
G. G. Yeamans, from the Yosemite, re-
ported the condemnation of 5000
pounds; Lieutenant Colonel O'Neil of
the steamship Chester, 1000 pounds:
Col. James Hamilton Lewis, 10000
pounds. He said that he should fix
Sept. q (the date of DR.. Daly's report)
as about the earliest at which the ques-
tion Of chemically treated meat had
been brought to his notice, so as to
command his full attention.
Colonel Gillespie took a hand in the
inquiry when General Miles finished de-
scribing the nauseating qualities of the
canned and refrigerated beef
did you, general, ever eat of this
L presume | did about the time We
We're at Ponce" said General Miles.
with some hesitation. Yes, presume
I did,
Then said Gillespie, "it has not
such characteristic qualities as would
permit you to detect it off -hand?"
mo, sir
General Miles left the witness chair
and Lieutenant Colonel Evan Horne Of
the 18th infantry was sworn. He said
he was at the outbreak of the war
major of the 22d infantry, and was
through the entire Cuban campaign.
Witness said he had used all kinds,
canned corned, refrigerated and
canned roast beef. He said the criti-
cisms of the canned roast beef began
early and We're made often. 1t was
objected to on the score of its lack of
nutriment, it's taste and it's appearance
After the men got cooking utensils they
stewed their canned beef. Before that
they ate it from the can. Either way
of serving it was bad enough, and
though none of it that witness remem-
beed was actually spoiled it was un-
palatable and the ground for constant
complaint was good. He did not recol-
lect that the large sick list in this regi-
ment in Cuba had been laid to the
canned meat. The men very very de-
D1lltated, nut he could not say whether
the meat ought to be blamed or not.
When the refrigerator beef arrived, a
large part of it was spoiled and the
men continued to use the canned meat.
The spoiled refrigerator beef was laid
out on the hill for the buzzards. Sew
eral issues We're lost in this way. Wit
ness had eaten some of the refriger-
ated beef which arrived in camp I'M
tainted. and found that good. The men
ate it without complaint and he had no
reason to believe it was any different
from the beef he had gotten at army
posts in the states
Lieutenant Colonel Charles Minor of
the 7th infantry was the next witness.
His regiment was among the first to
leave Camp Thomas and to camp at
Tampa. They reached Cuba and dis
embarked on June %. Canned roast
beef was issued as a travel ration when
they left Tampa and until the end of
the siege. 1t was replaced With ref1is-
Grated beef after the surrender. Mean
time, he said, absolutely no other fresh
meat could have been furnished dur
ing the siege. Complaints against tine
canned beef became general and mark
ed about July ,. He said he was using
it and when opened it was apparently
~