The representative., 1900-12-06
TRUE BILL f0i
/, RICH GRAIN Ten
y.
ELEVATOR OWNER sTuHR AND TWO
EMPLOYEES ARE INDICTED FOR
1OOCTORING' BARLEY-HIRED
MEN LODGED IN JAIL.

MEN LODGED IN skA1Ls
David H. stuhr, Of Davenport, Iowa,
owner of the Hawkeye elevator at West
Hammond, ILL.,, and Frank Moth OF
Hammond, Ind, and Gus Brussel, OF
West Hammond, ILL.,, respectively super
intendent and engineer of the Hawkeye
elevator. were indicted yesterday morn
ing by the grand jury for coloring grain.
The two last named were arrested yes
terday afternoon by Deputy Sherin SOLO
mon who brought them to Chicago ana
lodged them in the county jail. otuhf'
the owner of the elevator and the alieg-
ed instigator of the crime, mas not yee
heor arrested. though capias has been
issued against him.
ATTORNEY Haynie r. Pearson, VINO mas
charge of the cases against these men,
and who, together with Detective r. w.
Wallbaum. has been gathering evldeIcs
against them, gave out the 1oiiowlns
statement regarding the matter last
night:
previous to 1877, when state Ia"
was enacted against 1t, the practice OF
coloring gain, principally barley, was
widely prevalent, but as soon as It was
made a criminal offense unscrupulous
grain dealers who had practiced 1t gave
it up.
OLD PRACTICE RENEWED.
"Of late, however, it has been again
resorted to, and this is the first 1ndlct-
ment that has been returned under the
statute.
'To the uninitiated the term 'doctored
barley has little signifance, but thf
crime of so treating grain is serious
!. one. 1t is not only fraudulent prac'
tice. but it is menace to the health OF
the community The distinguishing fea
ture of first quality barley is the color
A light straw color indicates first-clasS
! grain. Inferior barley is of dark col
or. 1t was found many years ago tha'
by subjecting barley to the fumes o.
|
thus a poor quality of grain could b.
made to appear much better than i
1 | really was, and could be sold in man!
cases for first quality goods. Barle,
SO treated, if used for food. is deleterlou'
to the health, in addition to being {
fraud upon the persons who buy it fol
| first-claSs grain.
:. PROCESS OF COLORING.
THE process of treating it is, in thu
case we have on hand at present, as fol
lows: A long affair, resembling on th'
outside an air shaft, is erected. In thi
case the cOntrivance was erected alOns
the side of the elevator, beginning abou
twenty feet from the ground and run
ming upward about so feet, the inne'
\ dimensions being about two feet b.
four feet At regular intervals of a few
feet boards were arranged, slantin:
downward and alternating so that grai1
run into the top of the shaft was throw
from side to side as it went downward
"At the bottom of the shaft three
|
the sulphur fumes, produced by burnin!
the article in a furnace attached to tn
| pipe, are thrown upward and throug'
the barley as it descends through th
shaft. At the top of the shaft, 70 fee
: above ground, vent pipe is places
which carries off the fumes. Being plac
ed so high above the earth the OdO
cannot be detected. By running tn
, barley through this shaft it is thor
oughly fumigated and assumes the ligh
| straw color. In this way thousands @
bushels of inferior barley can be treat
ed daily and without detection from tn
outside
USED MAINLY FOR BEER.
l Barley is principally used for max
ing beer, and, although dOctored barle
Q can be detected by chemical analysis
not all of it is analyzed and a grea
deal of doctored barley has been pu
:, upon the local market of late, most O
b it used by brewers. This years barle
crop was of very poor quality; that i
why so much of it was treated.
: I'VE have suspected that they wer
;. operating a fumigating plant at til
Hawkeye elevator of which David II
Stuhr & Co. are the owners. l thin
that Stuhr is the only one in the firm
but am not positive about that. TIL
, fumigating apparatus has been in oper
alton since October, and was erecte
alongside the elevator structure as a
experiment at first Finding that
worked satisfactorily, they were at tn
time of the arrest of the two men erect
. ing another fumigator short distanc
away, as it was against the insuranc
regulations to have one attached to tn
elevator.
Most of the doctored grain was shil
ped East but some was sold here in Chi
cago on the Board of Trade Represent
ative men have retained me in this cas-
and it is public prosecution of viola
ton Of the state laws, not private pros
ecution.
MORE ARRESTS IN PROSPECT.
Detective Wallbaum has done som
very fine work; all of our evidence ha
been gathered within a week, and is
the most convincing character
n