South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-08-25
Packers Claim War Did
Not Boost Meat Prices

price scare" every scrap of 1nfOrma-
ton in Armour e. Co.'S possession has
been available When the morning
papers of Friday, Aug. a. announced
that food prices would be investigated
by the federal authorities, Armour "
Co Immediately got into cOmmunica-
ton with the United States attorney
for the Chicago district who was
then out of the city It's representa-
tive met him the following morning,
Saturday. Aug. 10, and rendered to
him. without reese rvation, any and all
information he might desire that
could be obtained from the books
documents and records Of Armour &
co.
In spite OF this voluntary coopera-
ton. Armour & Co, with others, has
been publicly assailed as if the pack
ers" had 10 be and were TO be hailed
into court as manacled malefactors
This outrageous treatment serves no
purpose but to inflame further pub
lie already overheated by exploitation
of ignorant. # not willfully malicious,
misrepresentation.
Look at the one big fact of the stu
alton 1t is this
When all Europe went war-mad,
little over two weeks ago, every news
paper in America proclaimed or pre-
dicted. in one way or another. a rise
in prices Of almost every article of
commerce That alone would cause,
as it did, prices to rise, because both
consumers and dealers everywhere
were Immediately prompted to an
ticipate the rise by quick and heavy
buying Food prices were affected
first, of course, and a scare" was on.
Then the scare was exploited and
that still further stimulated the buy
ing impulse Unprecedented demand
was created and higher prices grew
with it,
Families which ordinarily buy
sugar and -four by five and 10 pounds
were buying by the barrel Retailers
who ordinarily buy in five and 10 case
lots were buying, or trying TO buy, IN
80 case lots. AS consequence
wholesale and retail houses report an
Unheard of volume of business in the
last week or two-more volume In q
week in some cases, than in the
whole month OF July.
Under such conditions. and particu-
larly when the conditions are stimu-
lated by sensational exploitation of
reckless statements. no human power
can control. regulate or modify price
tendencies until the law Of supply and
demand is repealed.
MISREPRESENTATION has bred more
Misrepresentation There have been
many concrete examples Of it like the
following:
4 Chicago newspaper of Wednes-
day. Aug. 70. had Rep. Ware Of Penn
sylvana saving that. while meats IN
this country have jumped 81 per
hundred since war began, Armour
CO. contracted with England last
week for 5,0OO.OOO pounds OF canned
beef"
There was not a word Of truth in
the statement. Meats have not jump
ed 81 per hundred. Armour x Co. has
not contracted with England for can
ned meat OF any kind either imme-
diately before or since the war began
other publications had Us shipping
vast quantities OF meat into Canada,
10 be shipped abroad from there.
Neither before nor since the war be-
gan has Armour < Co. shipped meats
TO Canada for these good reasons:
Canada has a prohibitive tariff Of
IS a hundred against American
meats: Armour & Co has a plant IN
Canada and daily imports meats from
there as well as from other Canadian
plants.
Rep. Mcclellan OF Tennessee, on the
floor OF congress last week. in speak