Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1907-09-28
1t Has Fought Every Effort to Have Dates Placed Upon
Its Canned Goods, and Has Combatted Every Attempt
to Make Pay Costs Of inspection.
Now it Has Raised the Price of the Food Products of
the Country and Its Assaults Upon the Health
of Our Citizens Are Matters of Record

How do we know that suflcient prs.
cautions are taken to prevent contami.
nation2
How do the trust gentlemen knowS
They inform US that what goes %
behind the walls Of their plants 10
their own affair; that Ii, their buoi.
ness; they will manage Il an they ~
ft. Whose affair Ii Il, then, II the
nation eats diseased meat, II We are
poisoned by trichinae, II cancer In.
crcases?
Other countries are not 10 dull %
we are about these things. Other
countries understand very we'll The
monstrous pcrlls involved In the meth.
DDS Of this monopoly, and, therefore.
try to exclude American meats.
To quiet their objections the Unitsd
States ID supposed to keep an inspector
upon meat intended for export and %
place upon II an Official stamp certify.
Ing that It IL fit Tor food.
II, then, these are the methods n
regard to export beef, about which
there IL nominal inspection, what Do
you suppose are the methods about
meat for domestic consumption, on
which there In no inspection at alif
Whywas the Beef Trust allowed to 70
on year after year violating the law
and no attempt made to prevent ~
Why are the laws inert against this
criminal organization3 Why 10 a man
sent to prison for five years for forR.
Ing q 0ve-dollar check and these men
90 free for swlndling q nationi
Why do we contribute our dollar,
year after year to swell unnecessary
boards?
Why are VIC content to have our
food prepared for us In secret under
conditions that to any sane mind Ger.
tainly suggest fraud and treacheryi
We are not obliged to have these
things II we do not want them. The
remedies are simple enough.
Az to the ''lumpy Jaw" the tubercu.
losis and the cancer. put a stop to pri.
vatc slaughtcrlng. Let oil the slaugh.
tering Of food animals be done By the
State In the light Of day, without any
OF this dark lantern business, on eQus)
terms for oil. There arc very few
private slaughter houses In England
The cities md towns run their siausu.
ter houses under medical inspection.
But In England the people do not care
to be poisoned In their meat
And we need not worry about tue oh.
lection that publicly owned slaughtee
houses are an invasion Of the private
rights Of business. When It comes %
life and death there are no private
rights Of business. No man has right
to saved profits that he makes b.
spreading disease. We have gone too
fur on the road to public sanitation 10
turn back because some gentlemau's
profits IRE threatened. The State win
not allow you to 60 around with small.
pox or to conceal scarlet fever In your
house, although each may be strictly
your own affair. Compared with can.
Ger, smallpox and scarlet fever are
nothing. II the State can take radical
measures to stamp out cholera II can
take radical measures to stamp out
cancer. million times worse than
cholera. II 1t can provide pest houses
for public safety 1t can provide slaush.
ter houses for public safety. And its
duty In the one case Ii ut least a. clear
| M In the other.
~
Tho Eagles prediction that the Beef
Trust would raise the price Of food
on the people has been fulfilled. The
action of the packers Is expected to
arouse particularly those members OF
Congress who have insisted that the
packers should pay the cost Of the
meat inspection, for which Congress
now apprOprlates 100000 annually.
One of the arguments used against this
proposal has been the allegation that
the packers would ut once shift the
cost of the inspection to the cattle
ralsers.
Now that the packers propose to
shift the loss from condemned car.
casses while ut the same time they
profit by the advertisement of the gov.
eminent guaranty Of the wholesome
ness Of their products the proponents
Of the plan to make them pay for the
government inspection insist they have
an argument. Senators Beyeridge, or
Indiana, aud Galllnger, of New Hamp.
shire, have already promised to renew
the fight In the next Congress.
~6
Congress should ut once add to the
meat inspection law these three pro-
visions:
PACKERS should be obliged to
bear all THE expense attached to In.
spectlOn.
PACKERS should be obliged to
print date Of canning on the labels OF
ali canned goods.
SAIL meat In transit should b In
spected by the government