New-York tribune., 1918-03-02
Letters Read at Federal In
quiry Tell Of Exclusive
Rights Near Camp Dodge
Big Business at Branch
Food Administration Wanted
Hog Prices Kept Up, Says
One Epistle

duced to-day IN the Tederal Trade
Commissions investigation of the
packing house industry, as read before
Examiner B. NJ. Manly by Francis j.
Heney, counsel, touched on such widely
separated subjects as the Argentine
labor troubles. leaky cans of corned
beef. specifications for army and navy
bacon, gift packages of soap and toilet
articles and the quality of large con-
signment of hams rejected by the
navy.
Mr.. Heney first read copies of let
ters which he explained were taken
from the files of Armour & Co. The
first, under date of October IS, 1917,
bore the signature of r. A. Rightmire,
Of the Armour Des Moincs office. 1t
said:
"We have been granted the exclusive
right to build a branch close to
Camp Dodge. | imagine little pack
age of toilet articles and few bars
Of soap will be highly pleasing to Gen
eral Plummcr. He is particular old
COuSeI ana l lmdStnc MIN 10 De very
fussy about such things"
Other letters told Of the sending of
the toilet and soar articles to the
general.
Tells of Loyalty to Armour & CO.
There was delay in the arrival of
the package and, in reply to a letter
tracing it, another letter was read,
signed E. II. Plummer. 1t was short,
and read: "Package not arrived You
know my loyalty to Armour G. Co.
Nothing else Will do E. H. Plum
mer"
Another letter from the branch man
ager told of the arrival and delivery of
the package. This letter also included
a sentence saying: eve are doing
world business every day at Camp
Dodge and arc receiving every cour-
tcsy."
A letter to the Cudahy Omaha plant
told of a meeting of the packers with
DR.. Durand, of the food administra-
ton. This was dated December Is,
1917. and related that DR.. Durand said
the meeting was "secret, that he did
not want it to get into print" The
letter. which was signed by G.. c. Shep-
ard, vice-prcsident of Cudahy e. Co.,
said that the food administration "did
not want the price of hogs to go below
the fixed minimum of 15ia cents
pound"
"Hc told US in confidence" the letter
said, chat the January demand would
be very large and take all available
supplies"
The letter asserted the food admins
tration would not object to little
higher rrlce than 151 Y cents being paid,
but 1t must not 20 lower
Frozen Beef Discussed
In one letter under date of January
lS, 1918, L. IT, Wilhelm, of the Cudahy
Packing Company, was quoted as hav-
ing written 10 the South Side station
of the Cudahy Packing Company, at
Omaha, relative to meeting Of repre-
sentativcs of the Armour, Swift, Nor
ris, Wilson and Cudahy companies
wanted to know the actual stocks Of
frozen beef in the country. He found
out, the letter said, that the amount
was about 30,000,00O pounds.
"The doctor then said,' the letter
continued, "that they were going to
buy big quantities of beef every month
and he was skeptical about our being
able to take care of tho orders. He
thought the quantity would be a mini
mum of 100000 a week. He asked for
suggestions on how to provide this
quantity. His first thought was to have
meatless week, but was shown in
stantly that was impracticablc, as there
was no chance of our freezing our en-
tire weeks kill, and the effect of such
q measure would be as bad probably
as the present embargo on fuel.
"Mr White, Of Armour G. Co., sug
gestcd that each packer freeze 10 per
cent Of his kill, and on this basis we
would be able to secure 6,000,0
literally as expected" The letter said
that it was decided TO try the plan
Reference to inspection of meats by
government inspectors was contained
in a letter addressed to r. L. Yocum,
of the Chicago Office Of the Cudahy
Company.
Government Is Blamed
Lack of cooperation, the burden OF
previous messages, received this COM
ment: Regarding lack of cooperation
between government employees and our
forcmen and suDerintendents. would say
there is 40 question but that there
is lack of cooperation, and it is wholly
on the part Of the government. and it
is CALLING to think VIC have to stand
for complaints of this character with
absolutely no warrant whatever.
"The lack of cooperation mentioned
is the objections we had to Il young
lieutenant inspecting hams at Sioux
City who had never inspected ham
in his life. AS regards the leaky cans
being packed at wight time, that cer-
tainly is all rot. The fact of the mat
ter is we have an enemy in our camp
up there, as the quartermasters de-
partment knew here in Omaha that
they were going to receive leaky cans be-
fore they were received, getting letter
from Sioux City stating to examine
certain marked cases, which he did and
found four lealers. SO it is evident
from this that we are harboring an
enemy at that point"
Tho letter was signed "Thc Cudahy
Packing Company The only comment
made by Mr.. Hency on the letter was,
"Do you get that definition Of an
'enemy'?"