The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-01-21
SURGEON DALY'S REPORT

On 9Embnlmcd Beer That Officer Be.
fore War Commisslon--Brins an
Analysed Portion With Him-Sus-
tains Miles Assertion.
WASHINGTON. Jan. 20.-Maj. W. H.
DAILY, chief surgeon with General Miles,
and whose field service stretched from
Tampa TO Porto Rico, and whose re-
port oondemning the beef furnished the
expedt.ona.y forces created sensation
some weeks ago, made his long-awaited
appearance as a witness before the war
Investigation commission to-day. Sur
seon Days report was the strongest
IN language of thosSi submitted BY Gen.
crll Miles In suostantlat,od othls attack
on the beef Supplies. DR.. DAILY has been
too Ill to make his appearance hereto
fore. He was accompanied by General
Miles own stenographer, despite the
presence OF the commissions official
stenographer. On being sworn the
witness identified the report submitted
as his own. changing Its date, however,
from September 81 TO October 81. He
was willing. he said, to stand by his re-
port. II was wholly voluntary and was
rot called out by any request or In o5e-
dicnce to any circular or letter, so far
as he remembered. FIFE mad heard 10th
ing Of an official circular calling for re-
ports. At Ponce, however. some time
between August and Il, be believed he
had communicated to General Miles
some observations regarding beef sup
plies. AT Tampa on shipboard he had
noticed 4 quarter of beef hanging free
In the sun ON shipboard and he became
interested In the experiment Of having
fresh slaughtered beef placed undtr
such moist climatic conditions TO see
how long /. could stand It, II OBJ
served" he said. that the flies. espec-
tally the bull flies. did not affec, It; did
not alight on 1t, Or II they did they got
away from 1t very quickly. He had cut
off piece of that beef at Tampa and
cooked il. but It neither smelled ror
tasted naturally. Later he helped the
men corral some horses and subsequent
IL he had trouble with his stomach,
which he at first attributed to the ac-
tivi.y of corrallng. Then he noticed in
dications OF chemical presence that
brought back recollections OF chemical
stuff he had TO preserve elk in hunting
expedition in that Rocky mountains
some years ago. All that day at Tampa
and the next he had an unpleasant
taste. In that previous hunting expert
encc he had analysed the chemical pre-
servation and found It TO contain borax
and salicylic acids. These were to be
used externally on the. elk, but he had
rubbed it in the raw flesh and also In
jected It. Questioned as to>these ingre-
dents. he said boraX was not safe to
be used In connection With food or or
binary medicinal purposes. while the
salicTlic acid was most nauseous. loath-
some and disgusting. almost always dee
structive of digestion.
DR.. DAILY said he should say the at
tempt to preserve the beef by chemicals
was not a success. That had been his
experience on the transport Panama.
In the beef carried by his ship he was
pretty sure chemicals were involved.
THAT beef" he said. was very foul"
General Beaver asked II the witness
did not think his examination purely
superficial and without any substantial.
Knowledge. NO, / would not like to say
that witness replied. lie believed the
beef on the Panama had come from the
transport Manitoba. On the Panama
over II uID lie
some tea. o. soup. from the refrigerated
beef. the same that had been con-
demned. had filtered 1t aud scaled It her
me;lcally in can and when he reached
his home at Pittsburgh had analSzed
It. From this lie got iighttsi brown
residum. This, he said. disclosed the
characteristics Of borax and calicylic
acid.
DR.. Daily urged that he be permitted
to demonstrate the test. DR.. Conner OBJ
jected. Insisting that he leave the pow
dSr the witness brought as the residum
of THIS beef with the commission to be
examined By government chemist.
Witness pleaded no. to have the mat
ter taken out OF his hands. OFT COM
promise was effected by deciding that
DAILY be present with the official chemist
ar,l 1t was arranged 10 have Prof. Clark
of the geological survey here. examine
the powder at 3 O'Clock this afternoon.