Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1906-06-08

In recent issue of the Saturday
Evening Post Mr.. ]. Ogden Armour
makes the assertion that the govern
ment inspection of the beef trust
slaughter-houses is an impregnable
wall protecting the public from i'm
pure meat, and that not an atom OF
diseased meat finds its way into the
products of the Armours. Mr.. Up
ton Sinclair, author of "The Jungle"
{ terrific statement of packing house
conditions), studied the meat industry
for two years, including much time
spent in the Chicago stockyards as a
workman; he Is the best equipped
outside authority on stockyard condi-
tions. In Everybody's Magazine for
May Mr.. Sinclair makes a startling
and convincing answer to Mr.. Ar
mour's assertion. Commencing with
the statement that j. Ogden Armour
is the absolute and not the nominal
head of the great packing house in
dustry which bears his name Mr.. Sin
clair says: 81 know that in the state
ments quoted, Mr. Armour willfully
and deliberately states what he abso-
falsehoods."
That he might be properly equipped
to describe conditions in Packing
town" Mr.. Sinclair worked for a
period as laborer in the plant Of Ar
mour G Co., and he tells of sights of
filth and horror such as he hopes
never to see again, but the strongest
=, nf thn nj atr,r
that meat unfit for human food is put
on the market comes from a man for
years superintendent at Armour &
Co.'s Chicago plant, Thomas f. Dolan,
Of Boston. Mr.. Sinclair in his article
says:
"At the time of the embalmed-beef
| scandal at the conclusion of the Span
ish war, when the whole country was
convulsed with fury over the revela-
tions made by soldiers and officers
| (including Gen. Miles and President
Roosevelt) concerning the quality of
meat which Armour & Co. had fur
nished to the troops, and concerning
the death-rate which 1t had caused
the enormity of the 'condemned-meat
|
one man who had formerly super
vised it. Mr.. Thomas F. Dolan, then
residing in Boston, had, up to short
sine previous been a superintendent
at Armour & Co.'s, and one of Mr.
Philip D. Armour's most capable and
trusted men. When he read of the
death-rate in the army, he made ar
affidavit concerning the things which
were done in the establishment of Ar
mour & Co., and this affidavit he tool
to the New York Journal. which pub
lished it on March 4, 1899. Here art
some extracts from it:
"There were many ways of gettint
around the inspectors-so many, II
fact, that not more than two or thre
cattle out of 1000 were condemned
know exactly what 1 am writint
of In this connection, as my particula
instructions from Mr.. w. E. Pierce
superintendent of the beef houses TO
Armour & Co., were very explicit an
definite.
whenever beef got past the var
inspectors with case Of lumpy jay
and came into the slaughterhouse o
the 1iillng-bed,' l was authorized b.
Mr.. Pierce to take his head off, thu
removing the evidences of lumpy jaw
and after casting the smitten portion
into the tank where refuse goes, t
send the rest of the carcass on 1t
way to market.
81 have seen as much as 40 pound
- ofH faI wi
from the carcass of beef, in orde
that the rest of the animal might b
utilized in trade.
zone of the most important regul'
tions of the bureau of animal indu
try is that no COWS in calf are to b
J placed on the market. Out of
slaughter of 1000 cows, or day
killing, perhaps one-half are wit
calves. My instructions from Nj
Pierce were to dispose of the calve
by hiding them until night, or unit
the inspectors left off duty. The Ii
tie carcasses were then brought frol
! all over the packing-house and skinne
by boys, who received two cents II
removing each pelt. The pelts wei
, sold for so cents each to the kid-gloN
, manufacturers. This occurs ever
. night at Mr.. Armour's concern at On
cago, or after each killing of COWS.
, 81 now propose to state here exac
, ly what ! myself have witnessed
Philip D. Armour's packing-house VII
1 cattle that have been condemned
the government inspectors.
. "a workman, one Nicholas Newsf
during my time, informs the inspe
for that the tanks are prepared for Il
a reception of the condemned cattle al
; that his presence is required to $
a the beef cast into the steam-tank. N
v Inspector proceeds at once to the pla
y indicated, and the condemned catt
: having been brought up to the tan
= / NJ. ata