The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-02-12
ANTITRUST PACKING.
Proposed to Establish Inde-
pendent House Here.

A proposition has today been made
by the American Dressed Beef COM
pany Of Kansas City to the Topeka
Commercial club for the establishment
here of an antitrust packing house.
Charles McSweeny of Leavenworth is
Fresio ent of the company. The organ
ization is supported by the American
National Live Stock Breeders aSSocla-
packing houses through the cattle pro-
ducing country and farther east. The
Rock Island railroad has interested
itself i'll the movement and is en-
couras.hg it with the view of estab-
lishtrg the houses on its lines. The
company asks a bonus of cash and 50
acres OF grounds for stock yard pur-
poses. The precise terms of the de-
sired bonus have not been made public.
There is every reason to believe that
the antitrust packing house movement
will be successful as the stock men
of the United States are giving it
their earnest and active support in the
nope that they may get market upon
which Il ey may rely and where they
VIII rot be subjected to the extortion-
! ate charges of private stock yard COM
panles. The American Dressed Beef
com pany is the direct utgrOWth of the
National Live Stock Breeders associa-
ton movement and will receive its
moneyed support. It will operate it's
own stock yards. and should packing
4 house be located at Topeka it would
make this shipping point of immense
/ Importance, divertfng from Kansas
/ City an immense proportion of the
business now going there. 1t is the
| purpose of the company to bring the
sale price of shipped cattle as close to
the market price of dressed beef as the
expense of packing will permit
In the correspondence with the Com
1 mercial club, Mr. SWeeny states
that the packing house which the com
pany proposes to locate here will have
a capacity of five hundred cattle, one
/ thousand hogs and five hundred sheep
| daily and will distribute annually several
million dollars worth of dressed beef
/ giving employment to between 700 and
500 persons regularly. 1t will not be the
! purpose of the company to reduce the
price on the retail market although ii
| is possible that it will result from
| competition with the organized pack
ers.
A principal feature of the saving that
can be brought about by a packing
house supported in the interest of the
live stock breeders will be the elimina-
who operate the stock yards around
large packing establishments One o1
the greatest sources of loss to the
shippers is from extortionate prices OF
accommodations at stock yards where
it is necessary to ship cattle and other
animals destined for the packing house
All the efforts of the state laws OF
Kansas and Missouri to regulate tbs
I cHSaA So nave tSsuAlS0 0l4ss-e lSAeSloi ~
and have been the causes Of some Ol
the worst of legislative graft scandals
At the meeting OF the National I'm
proved Live Stock Breeders association in
Portland, Ore. in January, the subject
of the independent packing house was
taken up and indorsed unanimously. The
proposition has received assurance of the
most substantial financial aid for its es
adjustment Should a packing house bs
established at Topeka by the American
Dressed Beef company it would result
in no more injury to the already estab
lished institutions than If located in any
, other town in this part Of the state I
, Will raise the price of live stock as fal
: as the farmer is concerned. 1t wouIS
, bring immense shipments to Topeka ana
! would afford much greater market tol
purchasing to packers already establish
ed here.