Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1906-06-14

James Bronson Reynolds and Commits
sioner Charles p. NELL, the special
committee whom / appointed to in
vestigate into the conditions in the
stock yards of Chicago and report
thereon to me. This report Is of a
preliminary nature. submit Il to
you now because it shows the urgent
need of immediate action by the con-
gress in the direction of providing a
drastic and thoroughgoing inspection
by the federal government Of all stock
yards and packing houses and of
their products, so far as the latter
enter into Interstate or foreign com
merce. The conditions shown by even
this short inspection to exist in the
Chicago stock yards are revolving. 1t
is imperatively necessary in the in
terest of health and Of decency that
they should be radically changed I'm
der the existing law 1t is wholly i'm
possible to secure satisfactory results.
Orders Further Investigation.
When my attention was first direct
cd to this matter an investigation
was made under the bureau of animal
industry OF the department of agri-
culture. When the preliminary state
ments Of this investigation were
brought TO my attention they showed
such defects in the law and such
wholly unexpected conditions that
deemed it best to have further i'm
mediate investigation by men not con-
nected with the bureau, and according
ly appointed Messrs. Reynolds and
Neill. II was impossible under the
existing law that satisfactory work
should be done by the bureau of ami
NAL industry. | am now, however,
examining the way in which the work
actually was done.
Before l had received the report of
Messrs. Reynolds and Neill l had d.
rected that labels placed upon any
package of meat food products should
state only that the carcass of the ami
NAL from which the meat was taken
had been inspected at the time OF
slaughter. II inspection Of meat food
products at all stages of preparation
is not secured by the passage of the
legislation recommended l shall feel
compelled to order that inspection la
bells and certificates on canned prod
ucts shall not be used hereafter.
Packing Houses Unreasonably Dirty.
The report shows that the stock
yards and packing houses are not kept
even reasonably clean, and that the
method of handling and preparing
t, n
gerous to health. Under existing law
the national government has no pow
er to enforce inspection of the many
forms of prepared meat food products
that are daily going from the packing
houses into interstate commerce Ow-
ing to an inadequate appropriation
the department of agriculture is not
even able to place inspectors in all
establishments desiring them. The
present law prohibits the shipment of
Mninspected meat to foreign countries
but there is no provision forbiddins
khe shipment of uninspected meats In
Interstate commerce, and thus the ave
nues OF interstate commerce are left
open to traffic In diseased or spoiled
meats. II. as has been alleged or
seemingly good authority further evils
exist. such as the improper use Of
chemicals and dyes, the government
lacks power to remedy them. A Law
is needed which will enable the In
spectors OF the general government
20 inspect and supervise from tn,
hoof to the can the preparation OF tn,
meat food product. The evil scent
TO be much less In the sale of dressed
carcasses than in the sale of canned
and other prepared products: and yer.
much less as regards products sen
abroad than as regards these used a
home.
In my judgment the expense Of tn
inspection should be paid by a Re
levied on each animal slaughtered
ar this is not done, the whole purpos
OF the law can at any time be dC
feated through an insufficient apprC
priation; and whenever there was n
particular public interest in the sui
dect It would be not only easy bu
natural thus to make the approprii
tion insufficient. II 1t were not fo
this consideration l should favor tn
government paying for the inspection
The alarm expressed in certai
quarters concerning this featur
should be ailayed by realization {
the fact that in no case, under such
law, will the cost of inspection excee
eight cents per head.
call special attention to the fac
that this report is preliminary. an
that the investigation is still unfir
ished. II is not yet possible to repol
on the alleged abuses in the use c
deleterious chemical compounds
connection with canning and preserN
ing meat products, nor on the allege
doctoring in this fashion of tainte
meat and OF products returned to tb
packers as having grown unstable q
unusable from age or from othsr res