Morgan County democrat. (Versailles, Mo.) 1900-1906, 1905-03-17

Dig Packers E~xoneratsd BY Garfield
The report Of Commissioners Garfield
on the methods under which the business
OF the no called beef trust IN conducted
has been published and . closely printed
book OF over 800 pages 10 the result Of the
examination TO which that industry has
been subjected. The report ~ very iull
and complete, every phase OF the business
having been investigated with the utmost
care and thoroughness, as is shown by
exhaustive tables of figures, with authen.
ticated facts and statistical data covering
Glmost every detail of the business.
After a careful reading OF this ieport
Il is impossible to arrive at any other con.
clusion than that for some time past
there has been "A great deal SAID and writ
ten about this great industry that has
had no foundation in fact. Ii would ap.
pear that n popular clamor has resulted
from newspaper comment and the pas
sage of many resolutions by those who,
us plainly shown by the report, were with.
out any definite information. This re-
port, the result Of an inquiry in complI-
ance with a congressional demand upon
tie secretary OF and labor, IL
90 complete and detailed that, as "A whole,
it will not Of course be read by the pub.
lie at large, but the facts and figures,
authenticated by government expert ex-
ainincrs, which it contains, show with
indisputahlc certainty that the hue and
cry raised during the past year against
the packers has been at least unIcason-
able and much Of 1t, indeed, has been
hystcrical.
These officially asccrtaincd facts are q
surprise to very many who have been i'm.
pressed by the dcnunciatory language
they have read and heard for some time
past, for they now find that, instead Of
the great profits said to be made by
western packers, the business IL beng
conducted upon a smaller margin Of
profit than that prevailing IN any other
industry. COMMISSIONS Garfield himself
says: The year 1902, instead Of beng
one Of cxorbttant profits. az has been
commonly supposed, was less profitable
than usual" and this will be remembered
az the year when the highest prices ruled
and the packers were beng everywhere
accused Of cxtortiOnatc methods. Regard.
ing this very year when the complaints
Of injustice were the loudcst and the
most unanimous, the commissioner says:
'In fact during the months when the
prices Of beef were the highest, some, at
least, Of the leading packers were actual
" losing money on every head Cf cattle
tlaughtcicd' for the reason, he con.
iinucs, 1T was not possible to advance
the prices Of beef III full proportion to
the great advance in the prices Of cattle
ut that time"
The report nlso shows that the public
belief that enormous profits are usually
characteristic Of the beef bushes il en-
tircly erroneous, az 1t proves, alter iull
investigation, that the maximum net re-
turn on the several Investments was two
md thrcctenths per cent. and the mini.
mum one and eight tenths per cent.
The report is much too detailed and
extensive to attempt any thorough review,
but IT clearly demonstrates that there
has been II great deal OF unnecessary
alarm on the part Of the public as to TIE
meat situation and n good deal OF LOOSE
dcuunciatlon oil packers about whose
methods and business there has been lit
Tie or no real information. The concli-
eions of Commissioned Garfield are all
The more valuable as the cation
was by no means commenced III anything
Ike "A friendly or partial spirit and that
ii has been full and complete ~ shown
when he says; Gan the statistics taken
from the books Of the companies were
checked in The most thorough manner.
by the items. Many typical ban hns f
cattle have been traced from the time Of
yur"hasc to the time Of sale az dressed
: beef. thus obtaining accurate lnioiiha.
ton from original records Of costs, OF
actual selling prices and OF ultimate
profits. In many cases the statements of
cattle purchased by the companies were
compared with accounts Of the commlS-
sion houses through whom In. cattle
were sold The various checks ;lius en-.
ployeI insure the absolute accuracy 81 he
lyuIrs.'