The San Francisco call., 1905-03-04
REPORT IS MADE
ON BEEF TRUST
President Hands Congress
Result of Corporation Com
missions Investigation
PROFITS REASONABLE
Market Prices Reviewed and
Percentage of Gain ON Bus
mess Comparatively Small

WASHINGTON, March 3.-Presi-
dent Roosevelt to-day transmitted to
Congress the report Of the Commis-
sioner of Corporations on the beef in
dustry submitted in compliance with
the resolution of the House OF Rep
resentatives, adopted March z, 19O4.
The Presidents letter Of tranSmtttal
Is as follows:
To the Senate and House OF Representatives;
transmit herewith q report from the Secre-
tary Of Commerce and Labor upon that portion
Of the resolution Of the House OF Representa-
tives adopted March !, 1904. having to do with
the prices of cattle and dressed beef, the mar
gins between such prices and the organiza-
tion. conduct and profits OF the organizations
engaged In the beef-packing industry.
In view OF the fact that the Department Of
Commerce is now engaged upon other matters
involved in the resolution the Secretary OF
port thereon. THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The report of the Commissioner Of
Corporations is to the effect that six
packing companies. Armour & Co..
Swift & Co.. Morris & Co., the Ma
tionai Packing Company. the Schwar-
the Cudahy Packing Company,
slaughtered in the year 1903 about As
per cent of the total indicated slaugh-
ter in the United States; that the av-
erage net profit in 1908 for three of
the companies was SO cents per head;
that the year 1902, instead Of being
one of exorbitant profits, was less
profitable than usual; that during the
month when prices of beef were the
highest some at least of the leading
packers were actually losing money on
every head slaughtered. The changes
in the margin between prices of cat
tie and beef are in themselves no in
dication whatever OF the change in
profits, says the report. Price condi-
1904 are reviewed and the conclusions
are stated that the six companies es-
pecially discussed are apparently not
cvercapitalized; that the percentage of
profit on the gross volume of business
Is comparatively small and that dur
ing the years 1902. 1908 and 1904
Swift & Co.'S profits have not ex-
oeeded per cent of the total sales;
Cudahy & Co.'S are stated at 1.S for
1904 and 2.3 for 1908.
With reference to private car lines
in the packing industry 1t Is stated
that the profit Is a very liberal one,
net return of from IA to II per cent be-
ing indicated. but it is added that.
reckoned on the basis of dressed beef
transported, the profit would add but
little to the cost of beef to the con-
sumner. The profit of one concern. the
Cudahy Packing Company, on its In
vestment in cars was as high as % per
cent in the year. Further, 1t Is stated
that the principal packing concerns,
while they slaughtered but As per cent
of the cattle killed in 1903, they slaugh-
tered nearly 9S per cent OF the cattle
killed in eight leading Western packing
centers; that they control very large
percentage Of the trade In beef. partic-
ularly In the East and that they fur
nish New York about Is per cent. Bos-
ton more than S5 per cent, Philadelphia
about so per cent, Pittsburg more than
so and Baltimore about so per cent.
The report, in conclusion, says that
the National Packing Company, men
toned as one of the big SIX" Is
merger of various packing plants, but
except for that concern there appears
to be no general interownership Of
stock among the six principal compa-
MES.
In order to make certain OF the accu-
racy Of the results, the bureau adopted
a double method of ascertaining the
profits. 1t first compiled, from the de-
tailed records Of packing companies,
exact figures of the quantities, costs
and sales of cattle and all products
derived from them and from these ele-
ments computed the profits Of all the
packers separately and all together.
This computation was confined to the
Armour Swift and SchwarZchild q
Sulzberger companies. Then the fig
ures thus Independently reached were
compared directly with the bookkeep-
ing profits shown by the financial
statements of the companies.
A man with all kinds of money usual