The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-01-16
ARMOUR COMP ANY
 DENIES CHARGES testimony Was in Many Res
 poets False HAVE NOT DISSEMINATED Proceeding Against the Company Are lnstleated by 2 Boston Car Own CT Who Wants Railroads
 to Uae His Patent.
HAVE NOT DISSEMINATED

Chicago. January LA complete de- nial of the charges 4 .ade by witnesses before the interestate commerce commis- sion investigation of the business meth ods of the Armour refrigerator car lines, was made today by a representative or Armour & Co The testimony offered during the Investigations 1t is declared, by the Armour interests, to have been not only prejudiced and biased, but In many respects false.
 "The only persons making complaints against the Armour ear lines said George B. Robbins president of tbe com pany, "are not growers Or producers but a league of commission merchants who generally handle on an arbitrary com mission basis, produce billed to them. The most sensational of ali the misstatements made against us have been offered by Boston commission E--n, before the inter- state commerce commission, and tte House eomittee on interstate commerce. He is the vice president of the refrigera- tor car company, and therefore not disnterested witness.
 The unwarranted attack upon the Ar mour interests made by this Boston man. who, it is alleged, represents the commls- sion men of that city, was made up al most entirely of interpretations, either wilful or made in ignorance of conditions governing the transportation of perlshapie commodities
 This mans testimony that the Ar mour lines charged the Pennsylvania rall- road S2 90 for icing cars a. Jersey City, while other persons were charged $l, ana that they had refused to ice other pri- yate cars, he knew to be false, because he had knowledge that the Pennsylvania railroad was charged $4 per car, and that our contract, which required us to Ice any and all cars offered there, had never been violated.
 "Ihe accusation that the Armours had forced all competitors out of the field by buving LID the peach crop of Michigan or refusing ears to other shippers IS absolutely untrue. Armour directly or indirectly never bought Michigan peaches This same denial applies to the charges that the Armours monopolized the Geor- gia peach crop.
 "Our company can do business cheaper under exclusive contracts, and as result we endeavor to make such agreements with the railroads but the allegation that by these terms the railroad com panies notify us of intended shipments or | fruits to enable us to flood the market In advance of independent shipments, is q i falsehood, as there Is no ground what ever for such statement.
 refrigeration rates charged the pub lie by Armour & Go. are based upon the cost of ice and supervision, together with a reasonable addition thereto for general expenses These rates are print ed, and tariffs distributed among ship pers and railroads. Our company has never bought or sold any of the product | transported in it's cars as charged by witnesses during the investigation"
 "The entire proceedings against our company" said MT. Robbins, in conclu- sion, "have been characterized by pre- judced biased and false testimony, in stigated by this Boston car-owner, who seeks to have the railroads build their own cars under patents of his company. This fact has been carefully kept in the background all during the investigation" !"