The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1919-08-07
MEAT TRUSTS
AIMED AT in
KENYON Bill
BY A. z. cELoHoF.

| BY A. z. GEL0HoF.
! Members Of congress who are fight
/ ing the meat trust have worked out
Ian entirely new method for controll-
ing the great Chicago packers and
helping to reduce the cost of living.
It's embodied in the Kenyon-Ander-
son bill. which has met the approval
of all those interested in the abate-
ment of the abuses of packer SOW
ereignty. and has just been introduced
in both. houses of congress.
Here's the idea:
l When a merchant is unable to pay
his debts. his business is put In the
hands of q receiver, who manages It
| until it is once more on a firm finan-
| cial foundation, when he turns it back
] to the owner. purged OF debt.
| That's called financial bankruptcy.
| The same principle has been applied
to the case OF the packers, although
| instead of financial bankruptcy, it's
called moral bankruptcy.
| When any packer violates any of
| the provisions of the Kenyon-Ander-
(: son act, which places him under a
i
bankrupt, and his business is to be
| turned over to a receiver. This re-
ceiver is to run the business in the
public interest until it is evident that
the packer can obey the law, when his
business is to be returned to him.
/ This proceeding is quite simple"
said William B. Colver. chairman of
the federal trade commission. who has
done more than any one man to ex-
pose the iniquity of the meat trust.
| 1T simply adopts the procedure Of
the courts everywhere in this country
BY it the packing firms are not dis
possessed Of their property; they are
merely placed under suspension by
/ the courts because they cannot be
| trusted to operate their business
properly.
There is no opportunity for un-
| fairness or for political chicancery in
this measure. Neither the federal
| trade commission nor any other de-
partment of the government will have
anything to do with it; the courts,
which everybody, even big business.
agrees are absolutely impartial, will
run the packers business until they
can be trusted to run it themselves"
The bill provides that the president
shall appoint a commissioner of food
i stuffs under the department of agri-
culture to enforce the legislation
| When this commissioner finds that q
packer is violating the law, he serves
| notice upon him to appear before the
secretary of agriculture for a hear
ing. II the secretary of agriculture
finds from the evidence that the law
has been violated. he may suspend
the packers license to do business or
revoke it entirely.
The packer then has the right of
appeal to the circuit court of appeals
of his district, which, after consid-
ering the evidence heard by the secre-
tary Of agriculture. may affirm or set
aside the order suspending or revok-
| ing the license. II the order is at
firmed, the court issues an injunction
against the carrying on of business.
/ The commissioner of foodstuffs then
applies to the u. S. district court to
appoint a receiver for the property
who has all the powers of a receiver
in cases of financial bankruptcy. APP
plication for the discharge of the re-
receiver may be made either by the
commissioner, the receiver or the
packer, and the receiver after a
| hearing, may be then discharged by
| the court. At the same time the court
is required to enjoin the packer from
further violations of the law.
This receivership and moral bank
ruptcy" are among several new fea-
1 lures in the bill. which was written
as the consensus of weeks OF confer
ences by the men in curbing the DOM
| nation by the packers Of the food
/ supplies of the country.
The shift in the situation after the
| termination Of the war and the un-
certainty of railroad management
caused the writer's Of the bin to drop
the scheme proposed in the last con-
gress for government ownership of
| the stockyards. Instead a system Of
licensing has been introduced
Under this system the secretary of
agriculture viii demand that the
packers confine themselves to the oc-
| cupation for which they secure a IL
cense. AS the federal trade commits
| sion revealed some months ago, the
five big packing concerns control 562
| different corporations producing food
or other supplies which have no rela-
| tion to the packing business.
/ The Kenyon Anderson bill compels
them to the business of meat pack
| ing.
The secretary of agriculture" 1t
says, either on his own initiation or
! on petition of the commissioner of
foodstuffs. may require the licensee
to refrain from direct or indirect par
ticipation in the purchase, manufac-
ture. storage. or sale of foodstuffs, or
commodities other than those handled
in the business for which the license
was issued. either by ownership. con
troll. community. >or stockholding or
otherwise"