Show commissioner RE PORT ON BEEF INDUSTRY the report of commissioner gar field on the beef industry has at last been published it must be some what of a surprise to those who have been indulging in wholesale adverse upon the methods of the chicago packers as it discloses facts and figures which clearly show that the great food producers have been innocent of the serious offenses with which they have been charged they have been tor a long time accused by newspapers all over the country of extortionate prices demanded and ob talked of depression of values of cat tie at the various stockyards where their business la conducted of enor imong profits wholly disproportionate to the capital employed and in gen eral 0 carrying on their business that the public under an organized system of spoliation were being robbed for their exclusive benefit we find now however that not a one of these charges has been sustained but on the contrary that rigid and searching investigation ot fic lally made has resulted in corn acquittal instead of extortion it Is shown that no industry can be found where so narrow a margin of profit prevails the actual records and original en tries to which the commissioner had rea access showing that the high est net profit any of the packers made on their sales of beef was two and three tenths per cent in 1902 and in one instance that the profit realized in 1901 was one and eight tenths per cent the variations in the market prices tor cattle are exhaustively treated and no evidence of any kind was dis covered or even hinted at tending to show that values of cattle are in the slightest degree improperly affected or controlled by packers at any of the chief centers of the industry on the whole the report completely dissipates the prevalent idea that great fortunes are being amassed by illegal and improper methods em aloyed by western packers showing that notwithstanding the high prices or beet prevailing in 1802 the busl ness was less remunerative than in years characterized by normal values both for cattle and product he says that the year 1902 instead of being one of exorbitant profits as has been commonly supposed was less profit able than usual in fact during the months when the prices of beet were the highest some at least of the leading packers were losing money on every head of cattle slaughtered it was not possible to advance the prices of beet in full proportion to the great advance in the prices of cattle at that time after all that has been written reflecting ting upon the great business in terest engaged in the marketing and distribution of the product of one of the greatest of our national indus tries it Is gratifying to all fair minded people that the prejudiced attacks upon it have failed of verification and the great western packers may be congratulated for having passed through such a searching and thor ough official investigation the results of this investigation based as it Is upon exhaustive data officially obtained and verified by united states government experts must be accepted without hesitation as the investigation was made under circumstances that guaranteed corn accuracy with a possible disposition indeed to arrive at entirely different results |