The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1913-11-10
MAY CONTROL
MEAT PRODUCTION
Congressman Tavenner Calls Atten-
ton TO Fact That American Trusts
Are Rapidly Obtaining Monopoly
DIR. A. MELVIN MAKES REPORT
says That They Have Just Completed
Process Of Gobbling Up The Ar !.
genuine Beef Industry

FroceSs Of uoDbnng up The Ar !.
gentine Beef Industry
By Congressman Clyde H. Tavenner.
Washington, November That
the enactment Of the free meat pro-
Vision in the Underwood tariff bill
comes Just at q time when the Beef
Trust is obtaining world-monopoly
OF meat is the news brought from the
Argentine Republic by DR.. A. d. Mel
win. chief Of the Bureau of Animal
Industry, who has just returned from
q visit to the South American Re-
public for the purpose of studying
conditions.
DR.. Melvin found that the Ameri-
can beef trusts has just about COM
pleted it's process Of gobb1ing the Ar
gentine beef industry. It already con-
trolls 60 per cent of the export bust
ness-enough to fix prices prices
much below its American prices.
This seems to leave Australia and
South Africa as the only hopes left
to the American consumers. But even
more disquieting news comes from
these countries, especially from Aus
tralia, where the Chicago beef pack
ers have already made their entrance
into the trade. The American trust is
in fair way to control the entire
meat production Of the world, leav
ing all peoples on earth, so far as this
single necessity is concerned, at its
mercy. .s
The absorption of the beef export
trade from the Argentine Is typi-
cal example Of the daring magma
ton and grasp of world conditions
possessed by the American trust ma
gnate. The entrance of the beef trust
into Argentine was probably not due
to any apprehension on the part of
the trust magnates that free trade in
meat was likely to come. It was be-
cause, due to dwindling meat sup
ply in the United States, the trust
was losing its European export trade
to the Argentine packers, and having
an expensive refrigerating and pack
ing plant in Europe it was necessary
to keep up It's exports or lose the in
vestiments in these plants.
As long as there were free ranges
In the United States the packers here
had plenty Of meat for export and
could hold the European trade
against the Argentine meat. But the
western ranges are being cut up in
to small farms. and the resulting
diminishing supply of beef cattle is
strikingly seen in the figures. We
have now in this country about &c.
100000 beef cattle. Last year the
Department experts estimated there
were 100000 such cattle. Two
years ago there were 39.500,000, and
when the census was taken in 1910
the count was 100000.
On the other hand Argentine now
has 100000 meat cattle, and, be-
cause of the scantiness Of population,
before the ranges begin to be cut up
into small farms it is estimated that
that country will be able to produce
annually 200, 900, 900 head Of beef
cattle.
The switch of the European i'm.
ports OF beef from the United States
to the Argentine, followers closely
upon the foregoing figures. In 1906
this country sent 414,O00 cattle and
111,000 tons of chilled beef to Eu.
| rope. That export has fallen off an.
nually, until it is now negligible
factor in our foreign trade. But in
1901 Argentine sent $4,000 quarters
of chilled beef to Europe; in 1906
100000 quarters in 1912, 2,22O,OOC
quarters.
In 1908 the American packers
foresaw the outcome of this trade wal
and invaded Argentine themselves
Swift & Co. sought control of La.
Plata Cold Storage Co. The next veal
the National Packing Co., the Ar.
mour and Morris interests, bought
another big Argentine plant. Thu
real invasion began, however, IL
1911, when the Americans hat
greatly increased their investments
Whimsical trust methods they con
quered their Argentine competitors
in price cutting war that gave Eng
!! Annq