The Morgan County press. (Wartburg, Tenn.) 1916-1926, 1919-07-25

President WiIson-Variance OF IN
terests Is Cited BY officials-lilegat
Combinations Are Alleged in Doc
ument.
Washington.-An approaching pack
er domination of all important foods
in the United States and an lnterna-
tional control of meat products with
foreign companies appears to be
certainty unless fundamental action Is
taken to prevent 1t, the Federal Trade
Commission declared in Part 1 OF It's
report to President Wilson on the "ex-
tent and growth Of power of the hve
packers in meat and other industries"
"a fair consideration of the course
the five packers have followed and the
position they already have reached"
said the report, must lead to the con-
clusion that they threaten the freedom
of the market of the countrys food IN
dustries and Of the by-product indus
tries linked Herewith" Declaring
"the history of packers growth is in
terwoven with illegal combinations, re-
bates and with undisclosed control or
corporations, the report urged the i'm
portance of full publicity of corporate
ownership for all industries.
Laws Are Inadequate.
"As to devices for obtaining control,
there does not exist adequate law" the
report said "In its absence unfair
competition may run it's course to the
goal of monopoly and accomplish the
ruin of competitors without the secret
ownership being suspected and conse-
quently without complaint to the com
mission or investigation Of acts" Al
leging that the big Five packers
Swift & Co., Armour & Co., Wilson q
Co. Morris & Co. and the Cudahy Co.
Jointly or separately WELD contron-
ing interest in 574 companies, minority
interest in 95 others and undetermined
interest in 93-a total Of 1852 COM
panies-and that they produce or deal
in approximately IT'S commodities,
largely food products the report gives
this picture Of growing packer inva-
tries: I'm addition to meat foods,
they produce or deal in such divers
commodities as fresh tomatoes, leather
and cotton seed OIL breakfast FOODS,
curled hair, pepin, and washing pow
ders.
Their branch houses not only are
stations for the distribution OF meat
and poultry, but take on the character
of wholesale grocery store, dealers III
various kinds of produce and JobDers
to special lines of trade. They have
interests large enough to be doml-
mating influence in most of the serv-
ices connected with the production anu
distribution Of animal foods and their
by-products, and are reaching out for
control, not only of substitutes OF ami
NAL food, but of substitutes for other
lines into which the indignation or
their business has led them.
"They are factors in cattle-loan COM
panies making the necessary loans TO
growers and feeders of live stock;
they are interested in railways ana
private car lines Transporting liyo
stock and manufactured animal pro-
duction; in most of the Important
stock yards companies public
market for the bulk of food animals,
and in live stock trade papers on
which growers and feeders rely for
market news; They are interested In
banks from which their competitors
packing houses borrow money in conf
panies supplying machinery, ice, SAT-
materials, boxes, etc, to themselves
and their competitors; they are prin-
cipal dealers on the provision ex-
changes, where future prices in stard-
ard cured animal products are deter
mined; they or their subsidiary com
NAMES deal In hides, oleo, fertilizer,
material. and other crude animal by
products; purchase from other pack
ers these crude by-products, and carry
the manufacture thereof to a further
stage than most of their competitors.
"They are important factors In the
leather industry, in OleOmargarine ana
lard substitutes, In cottonseed oil, M
fertilizer. in soap and in glue. Their
vast distributing system, with the adj
vantages arising from the control OF
private cars, cold storage, and a net
work of branch houses, has enabled
them 10 extend their activities on
large scale into poultry, eggs, cheese,
butter, rice, breakfast foods, canned
vegetables. soda fountain supplies sad
ether lines"