Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1906-03-31


"'Downers.' the men called them.
and the packing.house had special
elevator upon which they were raised
to the killing beds, where the gang
proceeded to handle them with an air
Of business. like nonchalance which
said palmer than words that It was n
matter of everyday routine. 1t took a
couple of hours 70 get them out Of the
way. and In the end Jurgis saw them
go into the chilling.rooms with the rest
Of the meat. being carefully scattered
here and there 50 that they could not
be identified"
Mr.. Sinclair's description Of the meat
that Is put into cans Is sufficiently un.
appctizing. but his account Of how
sausages IRE made Ii still more 20.
There was never the least attention
paid to what was cut up for sausage"
he says: "there would come all the way
buck from Europe old sausage that had
been rejected and that was moldy and
white-it would be dosed with borax
and glycerin. and dumped into the hop.
pers. md made over again for home
consumption. There would he meat
that had tumbled out on the floor, In
the dirt and sawdust. where the work.
ers had tramped and spit uncounted
billions Of consumption germs.
"There would be meat stored In
great piles In rooms, and the water
from leaky roofs would drip over Il,
and thousands Of rats would race about
II. 1t was too dark In these storage
places to see well, but man could run
his hnnd over these piles Of meat and
sweep of handouts Of the dried excrc-
ment Of rats. These rats were nul.
sance. and the packe,s would put pol.
soncd bread out for them; they would
die. and then rats, bread and meat
would 90 into the hoppers together.
This IL no fairy story and no Joke; the
meat would be shoveled into carts, and
the man who did the shovcling would
not trouble to lift out rat even when
he saw One-there were things that
went into the sausage In comparison
with which poisoned rat was It'd.
bit"
The authors descriptions OF these nj.
legged denominations are merely Incl
dental to his portrayal Of equally ter
rible social conditions In the stock
yards. Jurgis finds himself In a jungle
OF wild beasts. all seeking to rend and
rob him. and the emotional interest OF
the story has to do with the terrible
losing fight Of this honest Lithuanian
family. The packing industry kills one
member after another, rilnS and kills
Jurgis' young wife under heart.rcndinp
conditions. kills his little boy, and
sends Jurgis himself forth into tho
world tramp and then criminal
The whole story Is chamber OF hOr
rors.
The latter part describes social nj
GERS not usually mentioned In novel
The most sensational chapter Ia thai
describing the unspeakable state Of
affairs said TO have been permitted and
promoted by the packers during TIN
big strike.
''rhey lodged men and women Of
the same floor" says the author, "ant
with the night there began a saturnalii
Of acknowledgements such as nevel
before had been witnessed In America
And as the women were the dregs from
the brOthels Of Chicago. and the mel
were for the most part ignorant cOun
try negroes, the nameless disease O.
vice were soon rife. and this wher,
food was being handled, which was sen
out to every corner Of the civilize,
world"
! The novel closes with the conversion
OF the hero to socialism, In which h
Is supposed to see cure for the evil
OF the beef trust."-ChicagO Record
Herald, February 20, 1906.
| ~
Extracts from Upton Sinclair's nov
el, "The Jungle" Chicago Recor,
Herald, Feb. 20, 1906:
Then there was the condemned mea
industry, with Its endless horrors. Tn
people Of Chicago saw the government
inspectors In Packingtown. and the!
oil took that to mean that they wer'
protected from diseased meat; the!
did not understand that these 1853 In
spectors had been appointed at the re
quest OF the packers, and that they
were paid by the United States gov
eminent to certify that all the dis
eased meat was kept In the State.
There were some cattle with broker
legs, and some with g0red sides, an(
some that had died, from what caus,
no one could say; and they were all Il
be disposed OF here In darkness ant
silence. "DOwners" the men callet
them, and the packing-house had {
special elevator upon which they wer,
raised to the killing beds where thu
gang proceeded to handle them, viii
an air OF buslnesslike nOnchalanc,
which said palmer than words that 4
was matter OF everyday routine.
There was never the least attention
paid to what was cut up for sausage
Thousands OF rats would race over thu
meat. These rats were nuisance
and the packers would put poisoned
bread out for them; they would die