The Greeley tribune., 1904-08-25
ARMOUR OUT
HAS QUIT THE PRODUCE BUS
INESS FOR GOOD.
Little Probability of Big Packer
Buying Potatoes in Greeley
This Fall. He Lost
Money Here.

a rumor last week that Armour
y Company had gone out Of the pro-
duce business has been confirmed
through the Kansas City Packer, a
publication devoted entirely to the
packing and provision business. This
means that it took Armour & Com
pany only one season to discover that
handling steers and potatoes are two
different things and that the produce
business must De learned before it
can be made profitable The Greeley
dealers are somewhat iubIlant over
the demise OF the giant rival, and
while they claim but slight share in
the education of Armour they have
added their little mite.
1t is not likely that even an office
will be opened by Armour here this
fail, as the news that comes from
Chicago states plainly that his COM
pany has withdrawn from the fruit
and produce business. 1t does not
state, however, what the causes are
that led TO this step, but the local
produce dealers here give as their
opinion that it was the pressure
brought to bear on the Armour COM
pauy by wholesale deal lers in produce
and provisions. In nearly every city
where there Is market for produce
| the ArmOurs established distributing
stations and they would sell ten
sacks OF potatoes as cheaply in pro-
| portion as carload. This sort Of
competition the smaller dealers could
not meet, and hence there was
trouble. 1t is also claimed that
Armour adopted the tactics of fore
ing meat dealers to handle his veg
etableS or take the competition Q! a
meat market backed by Armour. All
these things combined to make this
company disllked at the other end,
as the produce dealers call it.
Locally the Armours also received
some hard knocks, although it would
appear last winter as though it was
the Greeley produce dealers who were
Suffering, as his representatives forced
up the price OF potatoes here and de-
pressed the market at the other end.
| Luck somewhat helped the local deal
els in this fight. When Armour came
into the field, rather late in the fall,
the local dealers already had 30, 900
sacks of potatoes stored that had
| been bough: cheap. When then
| Amour began to force up the price
at the rate OF five to ten cents day
| they were filling orders with the
stock already purchased, and making
good profit, while the new com
petitor was selling at cost OF less.
what makes it all the more certain
that Armour has quit the field is
that the large warehouses that were
promised for Greeley by that con-
| pany did not materialiZe, aud no rep
| resentative has returned to Greeley.
! The farmers may feel a sort of regret
| at this, as in way they looked upon
| Armour last year as an angel of high
prices. However, knowing the tac
tics adopted by such corporations, it
| would be safe to presume that the
| forcing up OF prices was done more
In the prospect Uf forcing the local
| dealers out OF business than for any
| love OF the farmers, and when the
| time would come that there were nc
rivals in the field, chances are ex.
cellent that potatoes would be forced
down to almost nothing at this end
and away up at the other. The local
dealers may be pretty cold hearted,
but Armour has no heart at all iu
| this business matter, and really for
the good OF the potato industry it is
well that he had enough OF it the
! first season.