Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1902-05-28
BEEF TRUST INQUIRY.
Working Agreement Ended Last Week,
So Arbitrator Was Told.
TROY MAN ON WITNESS STAND
William a. COfiey Says He Was EN-
plOyed by Western Packing Firms
to MIKE Troy Butchers Set
tie Accounts Weekly.

Albany, n. Y, May 2s.-The hearing
into the operation Of the alleged beef
combine has been resumed before for
mer Justice Judson s. LandOn as ref
cree. The witnesses who had beer
subpTnaed by Attorney General Da
yies included William A. Coffey anG
Bruno Grodisky of Troy, John r. Rud
dy, Marvin Il. Hamott, Edward Ca
lron Saith, Leon E. Ogden, Harry w
Murray, BARLEY f. Quinan, Charles
La Fountain. Joseph Guthman, Robert
Guthman, John Houngan and Thomas
Il, Wilcox of Albany.
Mr. Cotfey testified that he was for.
merly employed by the western pack
ing houses to represent them in Troy
and to furnish them weekly with list
Of the retail meat dealers in his terri
tory who failed to settle their bills for
meat delivered each week These
names, he said, We're given to him by
the managers of the various branch
packing houses in his territory, and "a
complete list was given to each whole
sale agent once week.
Would Have TO Pay Cash.
The object Of this, he said, was to
compel butchers who were slow in
paying for goods delivered to pay cash
for their meat until such time as they
agreed to settle their accounts weekly.
He said that he had been notified
last week that there was no longer
any need for his services, as the gen
eral working agreement between the
packing houses was no longer In force.
He stated that he was engaged by the
various managers, but that the agree
ment under which the work was to be
done had been furnished him by a
man whom he did not know and whose
name he could not remember.
He stated that his official position
was stated by the agreement to be
that Of arbitrator and that when en-
ployed he was given 500 by each as
guarantee that the agreement be-
tween the agents would be lived up to-
This money. he said, was returned to
the agents last Wednesday at their
request
COhey Identifies Agreement.
A copy of the agreement was pro-
duced by the attorney general and
identified by Coffey. 1t was placed in
evidence. Coffey stated that about POI
70 hytnhnrc al,
week in his territory for delinquency
in paying. He did not know whether
the prices charged by the wholesale
agents In his territory were uniform or
not.
Attorney J. G. Kimball of Boardman
& Platt, representing Armour & Co.,
asked If he might ask the witness some
questions; but. objection being raised
by the attorney general, the witness
was excused.
Bruno II. Grodosky. the Troy agent
Of SchwarZschild & Sulzberger, testi
fed that he furnished Mr.. Coffey each
Tuesday afternoon list of retailers
who had failed to pay for meat de-
livered. The amount that retailers We're
delinquent, he said did not make any
difference. his order being simply to
report all delinquents. His instruc-
tons were TO furnish meat for cash
only to persons whose names were on
the delinquent list furnished him by
Mr.. Coffey.
1t developed that the attorney gen
I,nI Ia, &O ~
Zeiser, representing Armour e. Co. in
Troy, and III. G. Black, representing
Swift & Co., and the attorney general
asked the witness if he had not notified
them as soon as he was served, but he
stated that he did not.
John Il. Ruddy, the manager of the
Troy branch of Nelson Morris & Co.,
gave similar evidence to that Of Gro
dosky.