Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1906-04-07

the SnlCugO stVhsuTus, uNe the Shchc
Of daring novel called The Jungle"
published by Doubleday. Page h Co.
The author, Upton Sinclair, lived for a
time among the workingmen In Pack
ingtown. and his book Is meant to be
a searching and comprehensive indict-
ment Of the way things are done there.
The publishers say that before they
accepted the manuscript they had the
charges investigated by competent
lawyer, who confirmed the truth Of the
authors startling statements.
The hero Of the novel Is a Lithua.
MAN immigrant named Jurgis. who
comes to this country with his family
TO find liberty and justice, and who
finds only slavery, injustice and death
In the stockyards slums. According to
1ir. Sinclair, the corporation that EN-.
ployed Jurgis was nothing but one g.
eantic lie from top to bottom" In the
course Of his story he charges that the
reckless abuses Of the packers are pro.
tected By the city government through
graft.
"The packers had secret MAINS" he
eayA Through which they stole bill.
lions Of gallons Of the city's water. The
papers were full Of the scandal-once
there had even been an investigation
and an actual uncovering Of the pipes,
but nobody had been punished, and
the thing went right on"
The most serious charges are those
a. to the packing Of diseased animals
and spoiled meat. Jurgis Is employed
In various slaughter.houscs and comes
In contact with unsavory secrets,
which the author reveals In many
pages OF revolving details.
"And then there was the condemned
meat industry" he says, with Its end
less horrors. The people Of Chicago
saw the government inspectors In Pack
ingtown, and they nll took that to
mean that they were protected from
diseased meat; they did not under.
stand that these 1863 inspectors had
been appointed at the request Of the
packers, and that they were paid by
the United states government to GER
tify that all the diseased meat was
kept In the State. They had no author.
ity beyond that. for the inspection Of
meat to DO sold In the city and State
and the whole force In Packingtown
consisted Of three henchmen OF the 10.
cal political machine.
"And shortly afterward one Of these.
q physician. made the discovery that
the carcasscs Of steers which had been
condemned by the government inspect.
ors, and which therefore contained pto.
maines, which are deadly poisons.
were left upon an open platform and
carted away to DO sold In the city, and
70 he insisted that these carcasses be
treated with an injection Of kerosene
and was ordered to resign the same
week.
80 indignant were the packers that
they went farther and compelled the
Mayor to abolish the whole bureau OF
inspection; so that since then there has
been not even pretense OF any inter-
ference with the graft. There was
said to be $1,000 week hush money
for the tubercular steers alone, and as
much again from the hogs which had
died OF cholera on the trains, which
you might see any day being loaded
into box cars and hauled away to a
place called Globe, In Indiana, where
they made fancy grade of lard.
There were cattle which had been
fed ON whisky malt the refuse OF the
brsweries, and had become what the
men called 'steerly-which means Gov
cred with boils. II was nasty JOB
killing these, for when you plunged
your knife into them they would burst
and splash foul.smelling stun into your
face. II was stun such as this thai
made the 'embalmed beef that had
killed several times as many United
States soldiers as all the bullets OF thu
spaniards; only the army beef, besides
was not fresh canned, it was old stun
that had been lying for years In thu
cellars"
Among the curious things that Jurgii
noticed on the first day OF his employ
meat In "Durham's" slaughter hous'
was 1.-THE sharp trick OF the floor bosses
whenever there CHANGED to come
Skunk calf" The author goes on t.
describe how cows In condition uni
for food are regularly slaughtered
with the rest
1T was the law that cows OF thai
sort came along with the others. an
whoever noticed it would tell the boss
and the boss would start up a CONVEX
sation with the government insFactor
and the two would stroll away. So ir
a trice the carcass Of the COW would
be cleaned out, and the entrails would
have vanished; II was Jurgis' task u
slide them into the trap. calves and all
and on the floor below they took out
these skunk calves and butchered then
for meat and used even the skins OF
them"
One day Jurgis had 10 take the plan
Of a man who had hurt his leg. and
after the inspector and nearly all the
workmen had gone, a select gang was
vet to preparing the dead cattle that
had been gored or died Of disease on