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Show I All Meat Prices Shoot Up to New High Level When Case Settled (By 2. E. A. Staff Correspondent,) WASHINGTON, D. C. Meat prlvcs havo Improved. This may be news to you housewives, house-wives, but, nevertheless, it Is true. , The United States bureau of markets, J of which George Livingston Is chief, Im j insists tnat meat prices snow lmprove- I ment when they go up! I ' The higher they go up tho grjatsr amo Improvement? I Bcforo the first of March last the I federal trade commission was hot upon tho trail of tho "Big Five" moat m packers. The commission urged the I enactment of legislation regulating j I the packing combine. Then Attorney I J General Palmer stepped In. ' , Palmer declared peace with the i packers February 27. Under the Pal- ' mer agreement the packers promised 1 to be good, and Palmer agreed not to press court action against tnem.. 19 Palmer declared: jl "The decree which the department j of justice has brought about by urgei.t I insistence Is designed to restoro free- 9 dom of competition and Increase the opportunities for individual initlUh'o a In business, which niuat, In time, bear I good fruit for the public welfare."- I Here Is the "good fruit." m "The downward tendency, of beef 1 ' prices during January and February 1 was checked the first week In March, M and throughout tho remainder of tha month there were slight weekly l.n- H )rovomcntc." I This Is the report, Just published by the United States bureau of maiuett.. The two months before Palmer called off the packers cases, menc prices were decreasing. But' Immediately Imme-diately artcr he dismissed the oiiiti the downward trend was checked, a;J prices began going upward, j During March western wholesale meat prices went up from 5 to 2j per I cent. The smallest increase' wa in the best cuts of beef, and the hlnest price boost was in the cheaper cu:s of veal. Cheapest beef (common cows) Increased from 13 to 515; lamb Increased a dollar a hundredweight; hundred-weight; mutton went up 1 to f"; choice veal Increased $5; common veal prices were boosted from $1 to 522; pork loins Increased 1, and all other pork Increased at least a dollar dol-lar per 100 pounds. This price boost was made during March, immedlataly after Palmer dismissed the cases against the packers, when he Sala: "This will be highly beneficial to the public In Its effect." The bureau of markets reports: "While the seasonal demand""" for beef was slightly less (In March) ihsm during the corresponding month one year ago, tho Increased marketings of lambs and fresh pork cut3 Indicated a substantial increaso In volume of all tr.esh meats handled." But tho decreased demand for beef didn't stop the packers (freed Ly Palmer) from increasing beef prices. And the Increased marketings of lamb and pork didn't Interferewith packers pack-ers boosting prices of lamb and pork, in some Instances us high as 25 per cent. This boosting of meat price.. Immediately Imme-diately following Palmer's peacc-with- j the packers Is called "price improvements" improve-ments" by the bureau of markets. |