Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-06-04

cooked scraps of beef and other meats.
Some of these meat scraps were dry leath-
cry, and unfit to be eaten; and in the heap
were found pieces of pigskin. and even
some bits of rope strands and other rup-
bish. Inquiry evoked the frank admission
from the man In charge that this was to be
ground up and used in making 'potted
ham,
The Labels.
All of these canned products bear labels
of which the following is a sample.
ABATTOIR NO. =.
The contents of this package have been
inspected according to the act of Con-
gress of March 3, 1901.
QUALITY GUARANTEED
The phraseology of these labels is wholly
unwarranted. The Government inspectors
pass only upon the healthfulness of the ami
NAL at the time of killing They know
nothing of the processes through which the
meat has passed since this inspection. They
do not know what else may have been
placed in the cans In addition to inspected
meat. AS a matter of fact, they know
nothing about the contents of the can upon
which the packers place these labels-do
not even know that it contains what It
purports to contain The legend Quality
guaranteed Immediately following the
statement as to government inspection Is
wholly unjustifiable. 1t deceives and is
plainly designed to deceive the average
purchaser, who naturally infers from the
label that the government guarantees the
contents of the can to be what it purports
to be.
In another establishment piles of sau-
sages and dry. moldy canned meats ad
mfttedly several years old were found,
which the superintendent stated to US
would be tanked and converted into grease.
The disposition to be made of this was
wholly optional with the superintendents
or representatives of the packers, as the
Government does not concern itself with
the disposition of meats after they have
passed inspection the killing floor. 1t
might all be treated with chemicals mixed
with other meats. turned out in any form
Of meat product desired, and yet the pack
ages or receptacles in which 1t was to be
shipped out to the public would be marked
with label that their contents had been
Government inspected" 1t Is not alleged
here that such was to be made OF this
stun. The case Is pointed out as one show
ing the giaring opportunity for the misuse
OF label bearing the name and the i'm
piled guaranty of the United States Gov
eminent.
Another instance of abuse i9uthe use of
the labels came to our notice In two diff
ferent establishments great stocks of old
canned goods were being put through
washing process to remove the old labels.
They were then subjected to sufficient heat
to "Iven up" the contents-to use the
phrase OF the room superintendent. After
this, fresh labels, with the Government
name on them, were to be placed upon the
cans. and they were to be sent out bearing
all the evidence OF being freshly put up
product In one of these instances. by the
admission Of the superintendent the stock
thus being relabeled was over two years
old. In the other case the superintendent
evaded statement of how old the goods
were.
V--Treatment of Employees.
The lack Of consideration for the health
and comfort Of the laborers in the Chicago
stock yards seems to be direct conse-
quence Of the system of administration
that prevails The various departments
are under the direct control of superin-
tendents who claim to use full authority
in dealing with the employees and who
seem TO ignore all considerations except
those of the account book. Under this sys-~
tenn proper care of the products and of the
health and comfort of the employees Is i'm
possible, and the consumer suffers in con-
sequence. The insanitary conditions In
which the laborers, work and the feyerish
pace which they forced to maintain in
evitably affect their health Physicians
state that tuberculosis Is disproportionately
prevalent In the stock yards, and the VIC
Tins of this disease expectorate on the
spongy wooden floors of the dark work
rooms, from which falling scraps of meat
are later shoveled up to be converted into
food products.
Even the ordinary decencies of life are
completely ignored. In practically all cases
the doors of the toilet rooms open directly
into the working rooms, the priv.es of men
and women frequently adjoin and the en-
frances are sometimes no more than a foot
or two apart. In other cases there are no
privies for women in the rooms in which
they work. and to reach the nearest 1t is
necessary to go up down couple of
flights of stairs.t In one noticeable instance
the privy for the women working In sew
eral adjoining rooms was In a room In
which men chiefly were employed, and
every girl going to use this had to pass by
the working places of dozens of male oper-
atves and enter the prlyy the door or
which was not 6 feet from the working
place of one of the men operatives. AS
previously noted, In the priyies for men
and women alike there are no partitions
but simply a long row of open seats. Rest
rooms where tired women workers might
go for short rest, were found as rare ex-
ceptions and in some esta blishments wom-
en- are even placed in charge of privies
chiefly for the purpose, 1t was stated. to
see that the girls did not absent them
selves too long from their work under the
excuse of visiting them. In some instances
what was called a rest room was simply
one end of the privy partitioned Off by
a-foot partition from the remaining IN
closure A few girls were found using this,
not only as a rest room. but as the only
available place in which to sit to eat their
luncheon.
handling of meat has to be carried on in
rooms Of low temperature, but even here
callous disregard was everywhere seen for
the comfort of those who worked In these
rooms. Girls and women were found in
rooms registering a temperature OF 3So F..
without any ventilation whatever. depend
ing entirely upon artificial light. The floors
were wet and soggy, and in some cases COW
cred with water. so that the girls had to
stand In boxes of sawdust as a protection
for their feet. In few cases even drip
pings from the refrigerator rooms above
trickled through the ceiling upon the heads
of the workers and upon the food products
being prepared. A very slight expense
would have furnished drier floors and pro-
tected them against the tricklings from the
ceiling. 1t was asserted by the superin-
tendent of these rooms that this low tenn
perature was essential to the proper keep
Ing of the meat; but precisely similar work
was found in other establishments carried
on In rooms kept at a fair temperature. In
many cases girls of 16. II and Is years
stand ten hours a day at work, much of
which could be carried on while sitting
down.
In several establishments weil-managed