The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-09-15
BILL WOULD RAISE
RATES, SAY PACKERS
Testimony at Washington
Hearing All in Their Favor,
They Contend.
GARBLTNG Is CHARGED
Twisting of Statements to
Gain Points Laid to Federal
Trade Commission.
GARBLTNG IS CHARGED
s..e.a, n.,patcn 70 rhr sus.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14.--Hearings on
no various bills designed to place
government check on the meat packing
industry having ended for the time be-
ne representatives Of the packers In
washington issued a statement tonight
,iv,ns from their point Of view the net
,,,p,t of the proceedings thus far. This
statement said:
~rbe hearings OF the Senate Agricul-
ture Committee on the Kenyon-kendrick
and other bills to regulate and license
,bs hacking and allied industries have
.ome to a temporary halt. They have
Ae,n in progress four weeks and of the
nearly 200 witnesses from all parts OF
,hs country who have testified fewer
than ten have advocated passage Of the
measures.
.'rhe advocates of the bills consisted
NJ a representative of the Federal Trade
Commission which made the so-called
Investigation of the industry; repre-
sentative of an association of wholesale
erocers. who are business competitors
Of the packing companies a wholesale
grocer himself: members of the market
committee of the American National
Live Stock Association. OF which Senator
Kendrick. father of one of the most
radical Of bills. is the president; editors
of two farm papers-business COM
petitors Of the live stock market news
papers which would be licensed under
the proposed legislation; and two or
three perpons who have been cooperating
with the Federal Trade Commission.
Opponents of the LegislatiOn.
"The witnesses opposed TO the legis-
lation included independent packers, the
largest live stock producers in the United
States official representatives of cham
bers of commerce and numerous civic
and trade organizations. a former Gov
ernor OF Colorado, Mayors of cities. rep
resentatives of Gamers and farmers
cooperative organizations. many individ-
ual farmers. live stock feeders, live
stock commission men and retailers. Not
a single big packer testified during the
hearings.
ITO a man these witnesses protested
against Governmental interference with
Enthusiastically the complex pack
ing business-and the setting up of q
bureaucracy TO control and even stifie
an industry at the will of a politically
appointed official
by a flood of testimony during the
past four weeks It has been conclusively
proved that the Kenyon-Kendrick and
similar radical bills would, II passed,
bring about lower prices to live stock
producers and increase the cost of living
to consumers
ut has been shown beyond the
= shadow ot a doubt that the proposed
legislation would disrupt and probably
ba Iva n liaA
trdustries-the greatest and most vital
in America.
The proposed legislation. termed
s0cialistic' by many witne ssss, Is
founded upon the report made by the
Federal Trade Commission about the
packing industry. 1t has been shown
during hearings that the report is mis-
leading and grossly inaccurate a score
Of small packers themselves testifying
that they do not exist by 'sufferance' Of
the big packing companies-that not
only are they able to take care Of them
selves in the competitive markets of
the country. but that they in many IN
stances actually have made greater
profit percentages than the big COM
panies
Cheating Laid to Probers.
"The Federal Trade Commission
charged that the packers were monopo-
lizng the food products OF the country
and submitted a long list of products
dealt in TO prove the assertion II has
been shown during the hearings that the
list OF products actually handled by .he
packing companies were expanded and
warped by the commission, in order to
make its point, by the method of listing,
for example, thirty-seven different kinds
products.
by its method the Federal Trade
Commission did the same with many
other products 1t listed sardines and
canned sardines as two commodities, OK
tongues. beef tongue, beef tongue fresh
oeef tongue cured, picked tongue, potted
tongue and smoked tongue as seven
more, and -four and wheat -four as two
more.
1t has been proved. too, during tn,
hearings that the packers, taking tn,
narrowest possible margin of profit, ar,
abe TO deliver meat to retailers at
Price smaller than they pay for IL OF
he hoof through utilization OF byprod
uc's' and that instead of being a men
ace, as unknowing and prejudiced inter
ests have claimed, they actually perform
services Of the greatest value to consum
ets ana producers, making markets ant
paying good. fair prices to farmers 70
helr products, and keeping down tn
price OF the finished products.
The packers are gratiied that the op
pouunity for the public to determine tn
actual facts about the industry has pre-
eented itself. When the hearings are re
suined at an early date additional cor
lucrative evidence, although none 4
needed undoubtedly will be offered b,
persons having no connection whatsoeve
WIN me packers, who are interested II
seeing that farmers get fair prices, tina
consumers get low prices and that
bureaucracy over business Is not set u
In the United States"