Evening star., 1946-08-13
DecontroI Board Told.
Return ofCei|inesW Will.
Cause Meat SHORTAGE
By Malcolm lomborne, Jr.

next winter and spring if live
stock and meat are brought bacl
under ceilings August 81.
A. A. Smith of the American Ma
tional Livestock Association. frs
witness in the second day of hear
ings on restoring price control ol
j. major food and feed items, declare,
currently there is an adequate sup
ply of meat" which he predicte,
would continue for the next fou
months. Should controls be restored
however, there will be a temporar,
surplus of beef followed by short
ages late in the year, he said.
Senator Connally, Democrat. O
Texas, paid an unscheduled visit t,
the hearings in the caucus room o
the Senate Office Building to in
troduce Col. Jay L. Taylor, Amar
lilo Tex cattle producer and rep
resentative of the Joint Livestock
Committee.
Immediate Announcement Urged.
Col. Taylor declared that the pub.
lie interest would best be served %,
an immediate announcement by tht
Price Decontrol Board that livestock
will not be recontrolled now or a.
any time" He said such an an.
nouncement would lessen the dan.
ger of a severe meat shortage mex
spring. but that without such ar
announcement "the danger of thi.
shortage is very actual and yer,
grave"
The Texas cattle raiser claimed
that it was "a matter of utter i'm.
possibility" to control the livestock
industry now with the actual wal
ended and without spontaneou.
support that so many people gave
to any Government program durins
war"
After hearing Mr.. Smith testif,
that price controls on cattle ane
beef would not be in the public
interest, Daniel w. Bell. one of three
board members. pointed out thai
ne had heard witnesses both for ane
against control cite the public
interest.
I am wondering if there are two
types Of public interest" Mr.. Bel
observed
Insists Prices Are Down.
Mr. Smith said the board shoule
not be misled by the sharp increase.
In beef prices Immediately after
June 30 because las soon as legiti
mate channels receive adequate sup.
plies of beef, prices started to de.
cline and are still declining"
The bulk of cattle now beins
marketed, he insisted, is selling al
prices below June 80 quotations. He
added that much publicized by the
press is the price of few top loads
OF cattle at various markets"
Wesley Hardenbergh. president Of
the American Meat Institute, testl.
fed that it would be "deplorable fol
consumers Of meat, producers Of
meat animals and the entire mear
industry from the farm to the table
II controls should be reimposed."
Today, he said, the consumer In,
creasingly has the opportunity TO gt
INTO stores and come out witt
meat-without drawing a number
without standing in line and with
out being robbed by the black mar
ket."
Misleading Policy Charged.
The board heard charge from
Arthur B. Maurer, president of ths
National Independent Meat Packers
Association, that the Government
was seriously misleading the people
by adhering to a policy of discour.
aging production of hogs and feed
ing Of cattle" in the face of Gov.
eminent figures showing plentiful
grain supplies.
He charged that the Agriculture
Department was giving IAN errone.
ous impression" that, despite recorr
grain crops. we must conserve
grain and avoid feeding grain t.
animals He added: The truth
about his Is what We are shippin.
abroad is wheat and what the ami
mails eat is corn"
Wilbur La Roe, general counse
OF the association. contended tina
price controls were "unenforceable
and that the situation had de.
veloped into nothing less than {
scandal. and constitutes one of tht
nlackest pages in the history O
government regulation"
'The hoard u,oe !
B. Danzansky. executive secretar,
OF the National Association of Non
Slaughtering Meat Professors ant
wholesalers. TO take a tour o
Washington's warehouses where h,
said meat was piling up. In som.
cases. he added, wholesalers are re
fusing to buy more stocks.
Mr.. Danzansky contended tina
with such ample supplies of mea
here and in other cities, price con
trolls are unnecessary.
Realistic" Controls Favored.
Differing from other witnesses VIII
testified against ceilings. Morris Il
Cohn, general counsel of the Ma
tlonal Meat Industry Council, tol,
the board that his organization
which he said represented $500
retail butchers, favored some forr
OF price control of a realistic type,
He explained to reporters afterwar
that the council supported ceiling
at higher level than those exist
ing In June.
A spokesman for four of the Ma
tion's big retail chain stores testifie
that since the end of price ceiling
on meat, ample supplies in rela
ton TO consumer demand hav
brought back normal distribution @
meats at fair values"
The witness was Joseph B Ha
Of the Kroger Co.. Cincinnati. n
also spoke for Colonial Stores, Nor
folk, Va; First National Stores g
Boston and Safewsy Stores of Oak
land, Calf
nuoe nj n + Norxo c...