Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-03-14

WASHINGTON. March 1.-THE
future development of the meat
slaughtering and packing industry
which, according to the latest CEN
sus was shown to be the greatest
industry in the United States. Whl
depend upon the decision OF the
government in the Armour-M or:is
merger case which is coming up for
hearing at Washington before See
retary of Agriculture Wallace on
April 2.
Armour & Company and Morris
& Company are two of the hve
great packing houses centered at
Chicago, which for years have dom
mated the market. They do 65 per
cent of all the meat packing bust
ness in the United States. Last
tall J. ogden Armour came 20
Washington and consulted President
Harding. Attorney General Daugh-
erty and Secretary Wallace on a
proposal to buy Morris & Company
thus effecting merger or two oI
the greatest packers and reducing
the field of predominant companies
from five to four.
The government would not assure
Mr.. Armour of approval of such a
plan; indeed. Secretary Wallace
Indicated plainly that he would OBJ
iect. Nevertheless. the Armour
Morris merger plans proceeded and
were to have been effective March
I. At the eleventh hour. Secretary
OF Agriculture Wallace. acting un-
der the Packers and Stockyards
Act, issued a formal complaint
hating the merger and ordering
the packers to show cause en-
April 3. why they should not be
definitely stopped from oonsummat
ing their plans.
This is the exact manner IN Whicn
this momentous question comes up.
but competent observers at Wash :
ington see in the case good deal
more than merely a decision as to
ing companies shall be permitted 70
merge their interests. They see in
the case the turning point OF the
nations biggest industry-not only
big from the point of view of the
dollars involved but big in a hu-
man interest way because it affects
the pork chop. the roast beef and
the bacon of every citizen.
The big point which will be de-
cided in this case is whether or not
the big packers may merge. III the
decision is that the government VIII
permit such action. then it is pre-
| dicted that other mergers will take
place and that, quite possibly, the
! whole meat slaughtering and pack
! ing business of the country VIII re
| in the hands of two or three or
| perhaps only one great comblna-
| tion. If the government decides
that such mergers are unlawful
| %r 10 1nfnrpSt &
| predicted that even the big f1ve
| cannot stand. but must be divided
up into many separate parts.
May Have One Big Company
The question. then. comes dowr
to this: Are we going to buy oui
meat from single big combination
or will there spring up in each city
a local packing company to serve
community needs? 1t is general,
believed by attentive students of tn
meat packing situation that th'
trend will be in one direction or the
other after the decision is made
it has even been conceded by some
Of the men in the packing business
that with an adverse decision the
big five cannot stand without closer
combination and that, therefore. !
forbidden to combine they must di'
intergrate.
The economic aspects of the sit
uation are broad and of considera
BILE importance to everyone VINO
buys meat.
The big packing establishment
are fairly new in American deVei
, opment. Nearly every adult Amer;
lean remember the time not 81
very long ago. when the loca
butcher killed his own meat an
often drove a wagon, hung wit
various cuts. from door to door '
cities and towns. selling at reta.
that stock he had killed. This old
fashioned meat man has disappear
ed from Main street. The bi
packers found that they could dc
velop great, centralized organiza
2 tions which slaughtered at Chicag
g and shipped in refrigerator car
{ which tffey owned. t6 all parts c
. | the country, no matter how dis
2 tafit: Chicago meat was sold
Florida and Texas as well as
2 Illinois.
Beginning about a decade ag'
:, freight rates began to rise. Thes
rates applied not only TO the an
mails shipped to the great Chicas
Istockyards but to the shipmen
IRON Chicago of dressed meat