Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1919-05-19
The Meat and the Mustard.

silly
The Meat and the Mustard
For several years the federal govern
ment the packers and the live stock
raisers have been trying to determine
who is to blame for the condition com
planned Of by the consumer when he
compares the cost OF gold tooth fill
ings with porterhouse steaks. 4 wise
word assembler named Cervantes dis
covered THAT ''after meat comes mus
tard,'' and what we now hear about the
packers may be likened to the mus
tard'' Of public protest. In the equi-
lateral triangle OF the subject of meat
we find that the live stock producer
the packer, and the public are the, big
three factors and all of them appear
to find considerable fault with exist
ing conditions. Each occasionally turns
to the government with expectant
glances that the federal institution viii
somehow referee the bout. But the SIT
isfastory solution Of getting meat 10
the American dinner table in such
way that the kicking on the method is
not above normal, always proves 20 he
a will O. the wisp. In view OF the dis
puted revelations at the congressional
a few months ago. and
the faux pas made by the federal trade
commission, the latest theory advanced
by Thomas r. Wilson, the reale pro
gressiye' of business group OF pack.
ers, that the public likes to believe Is
reactionary, is of widespread interest
Mr.. Wilson told big gathering OF live
stock producers at one of their rallies
that they SHOULD know whether the
packing industry as it is now cond',ctcd
is the proper vehicle for you to use IN
disposing of your products" and he
went on farther to say that inasmu'h
as the government, the live stock ex-
change, the packers and the producers
Of cattle, hogs and sheep, are represen,
tatiyes of all the different elements
that have to do with the regulation and
conduct Of the meat industry-that
each Of these has a joint responsibility
to the public. Since none of these diff
ferent groups have succeeded by them
selves in satisfying the public, he wouh!
have them all join with the government
and agree upon plan to cover i've
stock production and packing house
methods, and finally fix the marker
prices in every phase of the industry.
4 IN other words, Mr.. Wilson appears
to be willing to carry the Hoover ex-
pertinent into operation as construc-
tive system Of permanent control,
thereby providing for public regulation
OF each and every branch OF the big
industry.
If the consumer is correct in his be-
lief that he is paying too much for the
steaks that he lays on his broiler, then
how does it happen that the cattle pro-
Queer is always complaining OF getting
too littleTunless the packer Is taking
too much toll? Or, horrors! does the
consumer pay too little? Among the
wrecks Of the war administration
stands the bare skeleton of the food
administration. But out of the wealth
Of big ideas evolved by that gians mash
room, it has remained for n captain Of
industry to pick gem-antl The s'lgges'
ton of that captain that the people
who raise the live stock "gct together
with those who handle it Ia the pack
ing industry, each working under tho
direction and in cooperation wi;h the
government, is in way to get down
to brass tacks' in big Industry that
Affects the entire public. 1t suggests
a method to find out what is wrong IN
the meat situat ton; and it provides q
method that ought to assure that tfese
wrong conditions will be corrected; tnd
that meats Of the future will not be
shattered over by so much useless m
dustrial mustard.