Evening star., 1921-11-16
SOUGHT !
At INVESTIGATION

Enort to discover what sort Of an
agreement there is between distrib-
uters Of milk in Washington to keep
the price where 1t Is. charged they
can continue to receive nearly 100
per cent profit. was made by Repre-
sentative Millspaugh of Missouri
when the first witness for the dis
trtbuters took the stand at the hear
/ ing today.
William A. Simpson. who has been
In the milk business for himself in
; Washington for thirty-three years,
ana WHO delivers principally to chain
stores hcteis and dunchrooms to the
told the committee that he is in ~
agrce'""nt with any other distriou-
/ ter and that he incurred the displeas-
Producers Association because after
the end of the war days he had re-
| duced the price Of milk about cent
guor, to the consumer.
mittee. MIR. Simpson admitted that
the entire reduction and a little bit
more came from the price he paid
| to the producer.
! subcommittee Divided.
At present the subcommittee con-
aTetins duo ing ths M he hsaring Ing, on the EN- milk sup.
divided on the question of tuberculin
test. as required by the health depart
! meat, or merely pasteurization. for
| which the distributors are contending.
Representative Millspaugh Of Mis-
,, souri, and Representative Kunz Of
| Illinois have both stated positively
| that in any legislation drafted as a
| result Of these hearings they will
insist upon compulsory pasteurization
| under the supervision Of the District
health ONCE. Representative Kunz
says that he will also contend for a
! per cent butter fat content. as is
required in Baltimore. instead of
| sufficient in the District.
| Representative Kunz said he be-
lteved that not only were the dis
tributors profiteering in the prices
were adulterating much of the milk
| through skfmming of some OF the
cream.
DR.. W: c. Fowler again today. when
questioned by members of the commit
| tee stood pat for a tuberculin test as an
| teurization test He introduced testi-
| mony to show that the West Virginia
| Dairy Association. which is not allied
with the Maryland Virginia Producers
| culin-tested milk This was introduced
in refu:ation Of the statement that tn
Mary'an Virginia Milk Producers AS
sociation had monopoly on the Dis
trict supply, being the only ones wht,
could ship in tubercu infested milk.
Walker-Hill Dairy Company, was the
frst distributor called TO testify
Several members Of the subcommittee
took notes on the prices he paid for
milk in Frederick county under a
bonus system. which are less than the
prices paid by other distributors to
the Maryland-V Virginia Milk Producers
Association. Representative Hammer
Of North Carolina and other members
said they proposed to show that Mr..
Simpson. while selling his milk In
truckloads to hotels, stores and lunch
rooms. Is in reality getting 100 per
cent or more profit and that he Is re-
ceiving more than other producers.
Willing to Show Books.
| Mr.. Simpson assured the committee
that he would be glad to have them
or an auditor acting for them, go over
his books. but that he hesitated to
make public Information regarding the
cost of operating his business, wner,
competitors would take advantage O.
lit.
j. ]. Barbour, milk -psoducer and
lattorney for the Maryiand-V Virginia
association, said that the associatio
also would welcome an investigation
by the committee OF its minutes anc
books.
i Mr.. Simpson reviewed before the
committee his fight lasting for year
and half with the Maryland-Vir-
ginia Milk Producers Association, and
said that he had told the Frederick
county producers that he would not
deal with them as members Of the
Maryland Virginia Association, but As
| individuals. He said that the Mary
land Virginia Association had started
a campaign to get him because he had
cut the price of milk in Washington
after war conditions had eased up.
Mr. Simpson also said that when the
milk strike started, although he and
other distributors were bitter COM
petitors. he had helped out some Of
them as far as he could from nis
surplus milk supply when the Mary
land Virginia Milk Producers Asso-
citation had cut them off.