Arizona republican., 1919-01-29
PACKERS FIGHT BILL,
Plead to Be Left Alone Say They Will Adjust Themselves to Peace Basis Fall Back on Flaw of Supply and Demand"- Morris Gets $7O,000
Republican A. p. Leased Wirel

' of two big packing companies today advised senate and house committees against additional legislation to regu- late the meat packing industry. Louis F. Swift of Swift and company told the senate agriculture committee pres ent laws were adequate to deal with any abuses charged. Edward $. Nor ris of Morris and company, testified before the house interstate commerce committee that any further legislation would muddle things
 J. ogden Armour president of Ar mour and company, announced yester- day he expected to consult represent atives Of all packers concerning meas ures to be offered as substitutes for legislation pending before congress. Mir Swift, when asked today by Sen ator Gore of Oklahoma, if he expected to assist such legislation, said he felt much of the so-called feeling against the packers" was exaggerated, and that legislation would not affect the situa- . ton.
 Some limitation of capitalization of packing companies was suggested by Senator Gronna of North Dakota, after | Francis J. Heney had cross examined MT. Swift concerning increases of his company's capital stock.
 MT. Heney said that by separating the Swift company into three organiza- ! tionS, recently the market value of the i original stock had been increased more 1 than S100, GOO, GOO. Alr. Swift denied this and agreed to inform the committee as | to transactions dealing with the sepa- ] l,a tiOr of com, nam into Swift and i company. Swift International, and ! Libby, NcNeiIl and Libby
 "Leave Us Alone"
 Mir. Morris, in completing his testi- mOny before the house committee, said the packers should not be interfered with, as long as they operate at the 1 present degree of efficiency and treat producer and consumer justly. Legis- lation would be particularly harmful at present, he said. because packers are making every effort to get back to a | prewar basis.
 Asked by Representative Rayburn 1 of Texas if he did not believe 1t would be advisable for the government at least to fix the price of meat, Mir. Mor- ris said such an attempt undoubtedly would result disastrously, because there were many factors in deteTmi
 
 government would have no control.
 "The food administration has been successful in fixing the price of meat sold to the allies" he said, "because the allies had to take our meat or gC without. As soon as the world market becomes normal, prices will be fixed by the law of supply and demand"
 "Tbe packers sell at the best prices they can get, but are forced to sell al a loss often to dispose of surplus quan- tities," he said. If the price was fixed, reductions would not be made
 when the supply exceeded the demand and meat would go to waste" Was Msinterpreted
 Referring to a statement yesterday ; by Mir. Morris that agitation and mis representation had resulted in the gov l ernment finding it necessary to talk |. over the railroads Chairman Sim asked the witness if he knew of single case where a railroad had gon into the hands of a receiver because O agitation or legislation.
 , T did not think my statement woul be interpreted in just that way" MI Morris replied. T meant that the rail
 roads had been attacked so widel that their revenue was reduced so loS | they could not operate efficienctly This was demonstrated by their condi tion when taken over by the govern 5 ment. It would be unfortunate if tn
 meat industry were placed in the sam position as a result of intervention"
 Mir. Morris said his salary was $70,
 900 year. as president of his com
 pany. J. ogden Armour, president C
 Armour and company, told the com . mittee he was paid $25, 900 q year, an
 Csrr.fF 1f Il company, had said he received $500 y Other Meat Men Talk \. Representativessof Cudahy and com - pany, followed Mr Morris. J. A. Mo 7, Naughton, traffic manager, submitte n figures to show refrigerator cars weI e operated much more efficiently by tf y packers than by the railroads. He sai n it would be all right for the govern s ment to supply cars to indcpendeI
 packers, but asserted the big packer
 should be allowed to retain those the u have.
 . Thomas Creigh, attorney for Cudah
 and company, told the committee would be "an utterly impractical, UT
 American procedure for the goverI
 ment to snuff out a business, withol n a. clear, judicial, unbiased investig; ,r tion of the facts He said such {
 investigation had not been conductt }. by the federal trade commission al l. that the commissions report W;
 filled with erroneous and distort, ar statements to which no creden
 should be given"
 Thomas E. Wilson, president of Wi
 son and company, and Edward
 Cudahy, president of Cudahy and con " pany. will be the next witnesses befo ii the bouse coumitteo
 "