South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-12-23
ARMOUR DENIES
BOOKS HELD BACK
Packer Declares Commission
Had Access to All Records
of Company.


CHICAGO. Dec. p. - J. ogden
Armour. head Of Armour & Co. to-
night issued a statement denying
that any effort had been made to
cover up information sought by the
federal trade commission now in
vestigating the packers. asserting
that the commissions examiners had
been given full access to the rec
ords Of the company and detailing
his part in the purchase of the
common stock Of the Chicago juno
ton Railways & Union Stoclyards
Co. and tn formation Of the Chi
cago Stockyards Co. The statement
follows:
Agents and examiners of the
federal trade commission have been
given full access and have been dill
gently at work for the last two
months going over the books and
records of Armour < Co. in addi-
ton TO which we furnished some
six weeks ago, answers to questions
prepared by the commission, set
ting forth in detail full informa-
ton of our corporate organization
and business and our interests in
subsidiary and auxiliary corpora
tons. including the Chicago Stock
yards Co Thus the thinking public
will not be misled into believing
that this was anything that we have
endeavOred to cover up or was in
formation only brought TO the at
tention of the commission at the
present Washington hearing, as the
press dispatches indicated
Details Deal With Prince.
In 1910, Mr.. +. II. Prince of
Boston. who for many years had
been the controlling force in the
Chicago stockyards, visited Chicago
and asked me if I would join him
in a syndicate of capitalists. in
which ! was to have a one-ffth in
terest, which was TO acquire by pur-
chase the common stock of the Chi
cago Junction Railways & Union
StOckyards companies. / agreed to
take and pay for such an interest
and did 50 in my individual ca
pacity in the same manner as l
have taken other interests in bank
ing and investment syndicates dur
ing the past % years, and as any
investor in the country would do,
having belief in Chicago as a live
stock center and the national in
crement in value that would ac-
crue with its development. I acted
in conjunction with no other packer
and such action can never be con-
strued in any way as anything
which might or can affect Armour
q CO. products any more than the
investments 1 hold in banks, rail-
roads or other stockyard companies.
This syndicate, under Mr..
Princes direction subsequently re-
suited in the formation of the Chi
cago Stockyards Co. in which l ac-
quired a one-fifth stock interest and
promptly transferred the same to
Armour & Co. No other packer
ever acquired or had, or now has,
any stock in the Chicago stock
yards CO. Al should be judged from
the relative size of that one-fifth in
terest Armour q CO. have not and
cannot control the company, have
had no voice in its management
nor have been consulted in direct
ing its policy. 1t seems TO me high
ly inconceivable that any one can
be led TO believe seriously that my
individual action as an investor was
a preconceived attempt to find a
way to cover up or conceal alleged
illegitimate profit for Armour &
Co. in any wise affecting the cost
of our product, our company doing
an annual business of over $780,
600, 900, when careful reading Of
press reports OF the testimony at
Washington discloses that all we
have ever received from our invest
ment was $3S,S0O quarterly in divi-
Jends.
What StOclSyarCls Are.
For the information of the pub
lie, let me add that a stockyards
company is not engaged in the pur-
chase or slaughter of livestock, but
simply in operating a public mar
ket place where buyer and seller
may meet and transact business and
renders a distinct service for which
a nominal charge is paid. The
stockyards company's charges for
service are the same today as 30
years ago.
IF il is to be adjudged improper
that 1 or Armour & Co. should
own an interest in a stockyards
company, it would be equally peril
nent TO maintain that We should
not own share of stock in a rail
road which transports our products
and with equal force that no bus
mess man in this country should
own stock in any transportation or
other facility the cost OF which
service might enter into the cost of
his product"