The Elk Mountain pilot., 1918-06-27
wAss.Issaress s.Ews LEvrml,.

| Washington, d. c., June 24.-Not
withstanding the recent exposure Of
the methods Of the packers by the
Heney investigation the work of alb.
sorbing competition goes forward
Charges were brought this week be-
fore the Federal Trade Commission
against four Swift concerns in the
rendering business. A specific charge
is against the Consolidated Render
ing company of Boston, and three
smaller concerns in Connecticut, all
owned by Swift & Co. The complaint
shows that where small competitors
were found, those Swift subsidiaries
raised the price for raw material
until the smaller plants were starved
out.
This is favorite method of the
food trusts. They have destroyed
many large independent rendering
concerns in New England by this
method and have put out of sbusi-
ness concerns of long standing that
had large retail stores to serve
a trade which they had been
years in building up. But the pack
ers came along, according to the tes-
timony, and where they could not
buy out these establishments they
have, set up rival shops and cut
prices until the old establishment
was ready to- quit.
The determination of the food
trusts to dominate every line subsid-
iary to their business and to gobble
every cent OF profit in food stuffs
on their way from producer to con-
sumner, was exposed in the Heney in
vestigation in which the methods of
the packers in absorbing the poultry,
butter and egg business in the farm
ing communities was shown to be
similar to the methods they are using
to get the rendering plants under
their control. By putting a buyer in
a community who paid higher than
the market price for few weeks,
they forced the. independent dealers
to sell to them or to go out of busi-
ness. Being rid of competition it
did not take, them long to get the
money back whekh they had lost dur
ing the fewlweeks of high prices.
Notwithstanding our exposures
and our Investigations" said sena-
tor of the progressive group today,
"the absorption of all lines of the
food business by the packers must
continue, as their dividends of hun
dreds of millions will naturally seek
re-investment in associated avenues
of trade. Nothing short of govern
ment ownership and operations of
the industries, as proposed by the
Nonpartisan league, will furnish even
a small measure of relief.
Senator Borah of Idaho, knowing
the sentiments of the producers of
the Northwest. and their determi-
nation to stand behind the President
in his fight on the profiteers, has in
troduced resolution calling on the
treasury department to furnish the
senate with facts and figures in re-
gard to the profiteering which will
enable Congress to deal with the
Senator Borah read to the Senate
the following paragraph from Presi-
dent Wilson's address to show that
information of this character is in
the hands of Secretary McAdoo:
There is abundant fuel for the
light in the records of the treasury
with regard to profits of every sort.
There is such profiteering now, and
the information is available and in
disputable."
Senator Borah said that the gov
ernment could not consistently con-
vict Rose Pastor Stokes for saying
the government was run by the
profieers unless it proved to the con-
trary by legislation in accordance
with the demands of the President.
The profiteer was defined by SEN
ator Borah as one who has taken ad-
vantage of his country's conditions
to gather extraordinary profits.
Such person, he declared is
worse than foreign spy and should
be dealt with more harshly. He con-
tinued:
"The President suggests very
proper and efficient way in which to
deal with the subject of profiteering.
criminal statutes should be passed
wherever they can reach the situa-
tion, there is no doubt that an effec-
tive aid to any criminal statute is
that of taxation.
81 regard that statement when
made by the President as somewhat
startling. If it had been made by
some private citizen it would likely
have started him on the way to the