Republican farmer., 1919-12-05
ACTIVITIES OF MEAT PACKERS
 ID BE PROBEO

Washington, Dec 4-The hearings of the Senate Committee on Agricul- ture into the methods and activities of the meat packers will be resumed soon. About a month later 1t is ex- pected that the committee will report to the Senate a measure containing the principal features of the. packing regulation bills, introduced Ty Sena- tors John B. Kendrick (DemocraO of Wyoming, and William s. Kenyon CRepublican) of Iowa. Then will come the battle on the floor of the Senate when the representatives of the packing interests are expected to attack boldly, there being little doubt that the committee will report a strong regulatory bill
 Leading officials of the large pack ing firms are expected to appear dur ing the first week of the final com mittee hearings and they will be fol- lowed by many stock growers and consumers. One indication of the act i've opposition of the packing inter ests to favorab-- consideration of the Kendrick and Kenyon bills was re- gently manifested in Arizona. The Arizona Stock Growers Association, comprising 1,400 members, indorsed the Kendrick bill last February. The packers agents have worked hard for a reversal of this decision ever since, and recently got the associations ex- ecutive committee to call a special meeting at which 53 were present and by a vote of 35 to IS the indorsemen was rescinded. The minority, how ever, wired Senator Kendrick that this vote in no wise represented the real position of the association, and that of the 35 many were representa- lives of the packers and affiliated companies.
 Nothing could be further from the fact than the charge that my bill is government ownership bill, and that it's effect would be to cripple the packing industry" commented Sem ator Kendrick recently. 'The bills purpose is to merely establish a form of public regulation whereby produc- CTS and consumers alike may be guaranteed that the industry will be operated with strict adherence to the American principles of fair play. I have no desire to injure the packer or to punish him for anything that may have transptred in the past. I am looking altogether toward the fu- ture, and I want to see such safe guards thrown about this industry that those who come after us may proceed with the assurance that no small body of men anywhere may maintain such a control of the in dustry that they may do with it as they will
 Monopoly of any kind, irresponsi- bIe power of any kind, either in gov ernment or in industry, Is altogether foreign to American ideals and prin- cipIes, and you may depend upon it that whatever you and I may do this struggle upon which we have enter ed will continue just so long as mo- nopoIy has the power to control the food supply of the country, even to the extent of a single mouthful for a single hungry child
 There are only two things needed to attain this end. In the first place we must have law that will deprive monopoly of the weapons by which it may maintain itself. In a second place we must put the white light of publicity on this industry so that not only in every year, but on every day In every year, the shipper of live stock may know that, whether his shipment Is large small, it is go- ing to an absolutely free market where he will get a price dictated by the laws of supply and demand only; so that every consumer in the country may know that the meat comes to his table free from artificial manipu- iation"