Sistersville daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1902-1905, 1905-03-25
What Has Been Trans
piring at the Capitol
[Continued from Page 81


the hoof and Of the dressed pro-
duct, Swift & company, doing a
business of $2O0,000,O00 a year,
have over 5000 stockholders. This
is the largest packing house COM
>pany N the world with $35, 0OO,-
900 capital, and doing business on
a margin of 2 per cent on its sales,
or a profit of 100000 year on
a capital of $50, 100000, return
of II per cent to its 5000 stock
holders. As Commissioner Gar
field does not find that any OF the
packing companies have been Ov-
er-capitalized, but that all have
visible assets well worth their
capital stock, to say nothing OF
the value of good will and trade
mark, this return does not seem to
be sufficiently excessive to JUS
tify the charge of extortion. AS
Garfield finds it, the big packers
by reason of the volume Of bust
ness, take cattle from the pro-
Queer and gives them to the con-
sumner at a profit of only SO cents
a head. This profit would not en-
able a small butcher, killing few
beeves week, to live, but when
the business runs up to over a mil
lion cattle a year it makes a re-
spectacle showing.
Where the Republicans are in a
quandry is in this-that Mr.. Gar
field is the son of the maftyred
President, a staunch Republican
and a gentleman of unquestioned
integrity. He is the bosom friend
of Roosevelt, and was selected for
the post of Inquisitor of Corpora
tons because the President had
sublime confidence in his honesty
and incorruptibility; consequent
ly, when he reports, after on in
vestigatinn in which the resources
of the Government, including the
y. @. treasury, were placed 81
his : ~Do.al he finds no trust. BIT
that the big packers are doing
business on a margin which any
merchant would regard as ex-
tremely meagre, the report must
be accepted or rejected by his
party. If accepted, the so-called
Beef trust must be exonerated; if
rejected, the Presidents friend
and trusted agent of the Govern
ment must be charged with in
competency. Either horn of the
dilemma is sufficient to give the
Republicans bad half hour.
What Roosevelt thinks of the
situation is not known, as he has
made no comment, publicly, at
least but this mnch is clear, and
that is that Garfield is being
groomed for the Presidential NOM
nation in 1908, and the fact that
Roosevelt continues him in his pO-
sition and countenance his Presl-
dental aspirations is sufficient
proof of the fact that President
Roosevelt is satisfied that if there
was any Beef trust or that the
great packers were making exceS-
sive profits, Mr.. Garfield would
have ascertained the same in the
course of his investigation, and
that, as he reported to the con-
trary, that report is to be accept
ed by the President and the peo-
pie of the country as final. 1t is
up to the Republicans to either
fish, cut bait, or get out Of the
water.
OF course, packers and cattle
men know that instead Of 80 cents
the profit is So. Mr.. Garfield takes
no account. apparently. of the by
products-the glue from the hoofs
and horns, the hair, the leather
from the hide, the beef tea eX-
tract. the bone fertilizer, the prof
its on the refrigerator cars, the
railroad rebates. etc.