Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-01-28
ARMOUR is
DRAFTING
PACKING
MEASURE
Says He Has Plan to Satisfy
Producer and Consumer,
and Remove AntagO-
niSm to Packers.
BY Associated Press.

washington, JAM Z|.-J. OSueIl
Armour, president of Armour &
Co., told the senate agricul-
ture committee tonight at conclu-
sion of his testimony, that he and
his counsel were drafting legisla-
ton for the regulation of the meat
packing industry which he expected
to submit as a substitute for similar
bills now before congress.
Before being presented the legis-
lation will be submitted to the other
big packing firms and the indepen-
dents for their approval, Mr.. Ar
mour said. He added that he be-
lieved the plan which he had in
mind would satisfy producer and
consumer and remove "antagonism
to the packers" which he admitted
seemed general.
Private Ownership Necessary.
Mr.. Armour reiterated that his op-
position to control by the govern
ment or the railroads of refrigerator
and live stock cars and stock yards
was predicated solely on his fear
they could not be operated as eff
ficiently as now. He said he be-
lieved private ownership of branch
houses absolutely necessary, but de-
clared government-operated branch
houses for the small packers would
not be opposed by the large COM
panies.
While Mr.. Armour was finishing
his testimony before the senate
committee, Edward S. Morris of
Chicago, president of Morris &
Co, appeared before the house in
terstate commerce committee in op-
position to the pending legislation,
which he declared would imperil the
industry and prove costly to the
consumer. Mr.. Morris had a pre-
pared statement of 1874 pages, but
at the suggestion of the committee,
he read only part of it. The en-
tire statement, however, was ad-
mitted to the record of the hearing.
Wants Money at Once.
Mr.. Morris told the committee he
had no objection to government
ownership of the meat industry pro-
vided his company was reimbursed
Immediately for its property and in
vestments. He said he would OBJ
ject, however, if payment was post
poned as "the industry would soon
be in such a chaNtic condition that
A DroDer settlement would be I'M
possible" t-
unless congress wants to have
another industry in the situation
where the railroads are now," the
witness said, "it should leave the
meat industry alone. Government
regulation might cause the ultimate
ruin of the industry, as we'll as re-
sulting in great increase i'll the
cost of living"
Says No Monopoly.
Mr.. Morris declared that there
was no monopoly of the meat in
dustry. Replying to the statement
of the federal trade comission that
there was collusion among the five
big packing firms in buying and
selling, Mr. Morris said the best
proof that no combination existed
was in the fact that prices of live
stock had more than doubled in
four years.
The witness charged that the pur-
pose of the market committee of
the National Live Stock association,
which he said was behind the in
vestigation of the federal trade COM
mission, was to obtain higher prices
for live stock which would mean
higher costs to the consumer. He
suggested that it might be advisable
for congress to investigate the uses
to which the committee had put
the fund of $l50,000 which he said
it received annually from the as
sociation. He asserted that he did
not mean to intimate the fund was
put to any improper purpose" but
said "its size would make it rather
dangerous if it should happen to
get into the improper channel"