Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1902-05-08
PROOF y OF IHt The TRUST RI
Testimony Taken in Beef Combine
Inquiry Before the Supreme
Court of Missouri.
Packers Assert that a Uniform and
/ Fixed Demand for Beef Pre-
walls in St. Louis.
Agreement Between the Big Packers
to Avoid Competition in the
Purchase of Stock.

Jefferson City, Mo-, May 8.-The ex-
istence in st. Louis of uniform and fix
ed meat prices and the secret rebate
in addition to the code list was shown
by testimony taken at the morning
session of the beef trust inquiry. At
torney General Grove said that the
objections raised by the packers at
torneys at Tuesdays session of the
beef trust inquiry does not pertain to
the validity of the antitrust law, but
only to the law authorizing the inquiry.
The two statutes are separate
"The antitrust law has been tested
twice in the supreme court and is un-
assailable," said he.
Maurice Prendeville, a st. Louis
union market meat dealer, was the
first witness examined. In answer to
questions by the attorney general
Prendeville testified that Armour,
Swift, Nelson Morris and Cudahy had
a fixed agreement regarding prices.
"The packers buy cattle on success
sive days." said he, so that each can
buy at his own prices. There is very
little independent buying in the East
St. Louis stock yards. The big pack
ers keep others out by telling the cat
tlemen that if they sell any cattle to
the independent buyers they must sell
all to them.
"A better grade of cattle is sent east
than that sold in St. Louis. The ordi-
nary retail butchers cannot get high
class beef. The best beef is sold to
butchers at II cents on the carcass -
Did you ever get a rebate?'' was
| asked of Prendeville. p
Rebates Hand Been Allowed.
| -Four or five months ago got re-
| bates on pork from Nelson Morris. At
| one time the cooler managers told me
that they had an agreement not to sell
at less than Sc per hundred. They
| would evade the agreement by selling
some cents lower"
rs there an arbitrator in St. LOUISE"
| asked Attorney. General Grove.
"The cooler. managers meet every
Wednesday afternoon and form a c.
o. D. list and on Saturday they hold
another meeting. 1 do not know who
| fixes the prices for them, but they are
/ fixed the last of each week for the
| week following"
when a man does not sell his cattle
in East st. Louis" continued the wit
ness, .and ships them elsewhere, the
packers send a dispatch ahead of him,
instructing the buyers to offer only so
much. Meat this year is much inferior
to that sold last year. The number of
| cattle sold and killed in East st. Louis
this season has been unusually large.
Most of the meat has been placed in
storage"
William Tamme of St. Louis, for
merly city statesmen for Swift, testified
to. uniform price at which statesmen
Of all companies were instructed to
sell. Attorney Ernest G. Dodge has
charge Of the C..FO.8D. list which is
made up every week, the witness de-
clared.r. @sf~9=, ~ v ~,
Tamme said that the increased price
of meat was out of proportion to the
increase in the price of cattle. He
said 100 butchers in st. Louis had
gone out of business, and that the
Mound City Packing company and the
North st. Louis Packing company
had also retired. = = 81 T', 49,.