The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-02
MEAT PACKERS TESTIFY
USED NO CHEMICALS ON RE-
FRIGERATED BEEF.
Contractors Explain the Process of
Canning Beef, and Claim That
Their Product Is Used All Over
the World - Soldiers Could Not
Identify Samples.

and enlisted men and representa- iVes
of western meat firms. The meat pack
ers representatives gave practically
the same testimony they had previous
~ presented TO the war investigating
commission, but it is understood that
this is only to get their general state
ment on the court record, and that
their examination today will be fol-
lowed by a much more detailed exam
ination into specific incidents connected
with meat furnished to Cuba and Porto
Rico during the war.
Major Jesse Lee, who has attended
the court for some days-it being gen.
orally understood that he was present
in behalf of General Miles, appeared
again today, taking notes and formu-
lating questions. He was allowed TO
question the men of his own regiment,
but his questions to other witnesses
were taken under Amusement by the
court, and it was understood de-
cision will be reached tomorrow as to
Major Lees standing before the court.
Sergeant Hatcher. Ninth infantry,
was recalled and asked to identify an
old and travel-stained wooden case of
canned roast beef, which his regiment
had received in Santiago and brought
cuSed, and Lieutenant Colonel A. l..
Smith was called and questioned as to
the history OF the beef on the steamer
Manitoba, which was sent TO Porto
Rico during Colonel Smiths service
there. As Colonel Smith recollected,
she was engaged in disch2rging beef
about six days. Only SO much beef
could be taken off each day as the
troops could use; consequently, she did
not discharge all her beef, but she had
a cargo OF other stores, which We're
much needed, and Colonel Smith sue
ceeded in getting them all off. He sup
posed her return to the states with sick
soldiers was unGur orders from Gen
eral Wilson, but he did not know
whether or not General Wilson knew
that she was carrying back 500, 600
pounds of beef to the states.
Colonel Gallagher of the subsistence
department, who was field commiSsdry
at General Skaters headquarters out
side Santiago, testified that when COM
plants began TO come i'll from the
front against the canned roast beef,
bacon was substituted as lar as pos
sible.
FED TO THE CUBANS. II.
There We're large supplies of canned
roast beef, Colonel Gallagher said. but
it was fed TO the Cuban troops and
Santiago residents, VINO preferred it TO
bacon. As there were more Cubans
and refugees to be fed than there were
soldiers. the canned roast beef did not
go amiss.
AS soon as the army arrived in San
tiagO, Colonel Gallagher began the is
sue of refrigerated beef under Colonel
Weston's direction. There were some
complaints here as to the refrigerated
beef. ana about I 600 pounds were con-
demned, to the knowledge of the wit
ness. He had no reason to believe that
any Of the refrigerated beef he had
seen had been chemically treated in any
Way.
Major john Guthrie, Fifteenth infan-
try, who was wounded during the as
sault on Santiago and spent some time
in the hospital at Siboney, testified that
he had can OF roast beef with him
the night before the fight, and had
eaten ii with relish. II was not so pal
atable as some beef he had eaten, but
it was wholesome. While he was in
the hospital at Siboney he saw the meat
used in stews, soups and other ways.
He was too fevered to eat it himself,
but he saw other officers eat it with
relish.
RESULT OF EXPERIMENT.
DR.. w. c. Bowden then reported on
the beef experiment tried on the en-
listed men yesterday. DR.. Bowden said
in preparing the various sorts of meat
yesterday one kind Of stew was from
canned beef brought back from Porto
Rico, q. third was of fresh beef bought
in the market here and boiled thor
oughly While the fourth was of fresh
besf parboiled eight minutes and sub
scQuently roasted half an hour. The
latter was the way in which the pack
ing houses said their canned roast beef
was prepared. -Four other plates of
the same variety of meat were served
cold. AS a rule Of the test four OF the
enlisted men picked out the Porto Rico
canned beef as what they had eaten
n Cuba. Two selected the canned
meat bought in open market Two
picked out the fresh beef which had
been simply boiled. OF the cold meat
two men picked out the Porto Rican
canned beef. four the canned meat
bought in open market and two the
boiled fresh beef One of them picked
out the fresh beef boiled and roasted
according 10 the packing house re-
cespt.
Major George II. Sands of the engi-
nesr corps testified that on the whole
the canned meat had proved a salts
factory ration. The refrigerator beef
resolved at his camp usually had 10 be
trimmed before using. buH lost little
weight in this way, and was generally
SATISFACTORY
ARAIOUR'S MANAGER TESTIFIES.
Arthur Meeher. general manager for
Armour q Co., described in a general
way ana length the process of pur-
chasing, Strengthening and packing
meas prepared by his firm. The re-
citsi was Identical in detail with the
testimony given by ali the packing
hcGse Representatives 20 the war inves-
SEA ting commission
Colonel Davis then turned to the
chemical phase of the inquiry and |
ASKED: What agent do you depend on |
tor the preservation Of dressed beef?"
Cold air, replied witness. absolute |
u nothing else
NJ AIees1er said he knew that one !
Powell had made some experiments at |
, al51pa With chemically preserved beet. |
but he knew nothing OF the deeails of 1
th.A experiment and none of the beef /
Has sold TO the government.
Regarding canned roast beef witness
sas-i the.e was no distinction between |
fi5e packing cattle and those for re-
and packers were leaner, so as to not
get so much fat in the can. the lean
est part OF the carcass was selected for
packing.
TIE only by-product Of the canned
beef was the water in which the meat
was boiled, which furnished IAN in
intestinal amount of beef extract
pressed to say how much beef extract
would be made IN packing 100 pounds
Of beef, witness pleaded ignorance of
exact figures. adding that scientific au-
thorities agreed that II was impossible
TO extract more than one and one-half
or two pcr cent of nutriment by boiling
meat. Eae said in this connection that
the beef extract business done by his
company was inconsideFable