The Worcester spy., 1899-03-03
Soldiers Condemn It
Strongly,
1T WAS REPULSIVE.
Mass. Men Testify Before
Court of Inquiry.

Washington. March 2.-There were
several interesting developments in the
beef court of inquiry today.
1t was a field day for the volunteer
arm of the service, the waiting room
being filed all day with members Of
the various volunteer regiments which
served in Cuba and Porto Rico. Among
them were a number Of Massachusetts
soldiers.
The question of counsel for Gen.
Miles before the court is still in abey-
ance Gen. Miles has not asked to be
represented by counsel, presumably
because that would put him in the po-
sition of admitting himself on trial by
the court, which up to date he has de-
clined to admit. On the other hand,
the court does not feel able under the
articles of war to permit Major Lee
or any one else to cross question wit
nesses unless he can be recognized
officially as counsel for the defense.
Clarence Walters of the First Volun-
teer Engineers of New York was the
first witness. He was asked what his
experienced with canned beef had
been on the voyage of mis- transport
to Porto Rico, and replied that the
first can he saw opened had worms in
1t, and a few minutes after being
opened developed such a putrid odor
that it was impossible to have it about.
He ate some of it and was made vio-
lently sick.
After reaching Porto Rico he was
sick for a week as result of the voy-
age He was given some medicine and
told he would be all right in a little
while.
Were you sick before you went
aboard the transport?' asked Col. Gil
lespie.
What sort of life had you led be-
fore going into the service?"
II can't say that 1 have been a dis
sipated man." was the reply and there
was a general smile around the room.
Col. Gillespie frowned and changed the
form of his question.
81 don't mean that. What business
were you in before entering the SER
vioe?"
II was in the newspaper business"
Capt. Herbert o. Hicks of Co. M, Sec
ond Massachusetts, Adams, followed
with an account Of the canned beef
used by his command in CUBA. His de-
SCclDIlOu OI the IltdL QIu iIDI IIIohC ~
out quite so repulsive as that served
to Walters in Porto Rico, but he s>id
it was a Shiny. stringy mass. nauseat-
ing to the taste, without nutriment and
without form that could be recognized
as meat, except by the melted fat with
which it was soaked.
Capt. Hicks said that his command
was all sick, first and last, but he did
not attribute the general breakdown to
food httt n tho Q1iTfo ate flNbn
were made temporarily sick by the
canned meat, but recovered, and as
they ate very little of it, it did not
have much chance to affect them.
Lieut.. George Taylor, late of the
Sixth Massachusetts, who said he was
a groceryman before entering the SER
vice, said his regiment served in Porto
Rico They had very little that they
could eat on the trip down. Asked II
he thought any sickness in his com
mand was caused by the food the men
had to eat he replied: 'I think it was
more due to what we did not have to
eat. When we got to Porto Rico there
were 80 of us men so sick they were
never landed"
WAS this state of undertaking gem
eral aboard the transport" asked Col
Davis.
Eyes, sir"
<Col. Davis: Gen. Miles was on board.
Did you report to him?'
Il did not think we had any right to
go over the head of our colonel. We
reported to him. I heard him speak
to the commissary captain, and the
captain answered that the men were
getting all they would get, and would
probably get a good deal less when
they got on shore. That was all heard
Of the report" His colonel was Chas.
F. Woodward.
M. o. Dywer of the Ninth Massachu-
setts volunteers, said that on the trip
to Cuba, they had been served a fairly
good brand of canned roast beef, much
the same as he had seen at home.
One of his experiences with the cam
ned roast beef was on San Juan hill
when his mess was out of rations. He
found can Of roast beef in one Of the
abandoned camps of the Sixth cavalry.
Il thought it was going to be a Cod
send to the mess" said he feeingly,
and / put it in my shirt. ! was smok
ing cigar at the time, but when the |
cigar went out / smelled something aw-
full, and when I found out what was
the matter it was the can of roast beef
in my shirt, ] found the can cracked |
in one corner and oh! sir, 1t was awful" |
His first experience with refrigerator
beef was on the San Juan Hill July |
u. The beef was nearly all of it |
mouldy and most of 1t tainted so that |
the men We're sickened by eating it. |
On the voyage home the men could eat
little but hard tack and coffee.
Then we started home sick" said |
Dwyer in conclusion. "and when we
got to Montauk Point the Massa chusetts |
Aid Society rescued us from the COM
missary department"
DR.. Maxwell Christine of Phiadel- |
pha, the witness who was supposed to |
have seen the chemical preparation of
meat in the packing house Of Swift & |
Co. in Omaha, testified that while in !
Omaha last year he had been through |
the slaughter house of the Swift firm !
and had seen a man with a canula on
the end of a flexible tube showing it |
into sections Of meat and injecting
them with fluid. He did not know at
the time what the fluid was or whether
the meat being treated was corned beef, !
pork or refrigerator beef. The meat
was cut in Is or 20 pound pieces, and
was not in sides or quarters. He paid
little attention to the matter at the |
time, but when the discussion over
"embalmed beef arose. he deemed Il |
his duty to write to Gen. Miles telling
him what he had seen. He did not say
in his letter that it was beef which
was being injected, but merely that 1t
was meat. He had regarded this COM
munication as confidential, but IL had
got out and brought him a great many
letters.