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Show SAYS PACKING HOUSES ARE VERY DIRTY PLACES Commissioner Nell Sticks to His Report! Re-port! When Examined by House Committee on Agriculture. Wnshlngton. Tho house commltteo on ngrlcnlture continued its hearing on tho Nelll-Reynolds ment Inspection report on ThurBdny. Thomas E. Wilson, Wil-son, mnnngcr for Nelson, Morris & Co., and representing tho largo Chicago packing houses, continued his remarks on tho Uevcrldgo amendment providing provid-ing for meat Inspection. Asldo from tho objections ho had previously pointed out, Mr. Wilson said tho only other serious objection was tho provision placing tho cost ol Inspection on tho pnekers. Mr. Nelll wns put on the stnnd and ho related a parting Interview with Mr. Dyson, consulting vetcrannrlan In Chlcngo, representing tho pnekers. Mr Dyson, ho said, hnd suggested thai Nelll nnd Reynolds go to Wnshlngton, mnko no report, but Inform tho pack ors of tho conditions found nnd sug gostlons for remedies, then to wnlt thirty days nnd como bnck nnd see It conditions hnd not boon bettered This, ho Indicated, wns to prevent in Jury to tho trndo. Mr. Nelll said ho replied that ho wat not authorized to mnko any trndo or denl, thnt he did not know whnt ho president's plan wns, but believed It wns to securo adequate legislation. Mr Nelll followed this statement with o lottor ho hnd received from Mr. Dyson, In which It wns suggested n snnltnry committee bo nppolnted and that It ba given thirty days to accomplish Improvement, Im-provement, pending which no reports should he mnde. Mr. Nelll rather discouraged a visit of tho commltteo to Chicago nt this time, as mnny of tho conditions com-plained com-plained of woro duo to negllgcnco nnd could havo been remedied Immediately. Immediate-ly. Mr. Nelll denied tho statement ol Mr. Wilson thnt tho floors wore scrubbed dally. The dirt in some ol tho rooms wns caked on tho floor and had not been washed for weeks. Mr. Nelll said ho nt first begnn mnk Ing notes of the conditions, but nftei several dnys, seeing no change in conditions con-ditions from dny to day ho abandoned tho practice. Ho felt justified in saying say-ing thnt he dirty floors wns a commor condition. Thero were Bomo dlrtj and some clean rooms, but a clean room seemed to be accidental nnd gave tho Impression that sanitation was not a matter that was looked aftor in thoso plants, Mr, Nelll said he remembered in particular ono coowng room wns dirty and ho remembered walls, particularly In the entrances, thnt were sticky with dirt nnd a pillar that you could scrape dirt from with your knife. Thero wore rooms with rafters from ceilings which hnd not been whitewashed In months. In tho boning room Mr. Nelll snld ho had seen dirt. In this connection ho took Issuo with Mr. Wilson's state-ment. state-ment. Ono Instance ho remembered specifically In tho Nelson Morris houso. Ho saw ono of tho men who had just finished his boning wnlk over tho dirt floor to a pile of meat on the floor, climb on tho pile with his feet, knocs and hands, pick up n pleco and throw It fifteen feet on tho floor tc his bench, nnd ns tho dinner slgnnl sounded nt Hint tlmo ho saw men climb upon their tnbles, get thcli lunches nnd sit down on their tnbles to eat. This, ho said, was directly under un-der tho cyo of tho superintendent. Mr. Nelll said tho papers horaldcd their arrival In Chicago nnd their pros-.onco pros-.onco In tho packing houses wns knowr dally. Asked agnln about tho bono con voyor by Mr. Lorlmor, Mr. Nelll said .tho convoyor wns covcrod with grenst black with dirt. Ho was not prepared to cay thnt thnt pnrtlculnr convoyoi wns used In n pnrtlculnr place. Tho 8llpplng of n hog Into n prlvj wbb mado tho subject of a colloquy bo tweon tho wltnuss nnd Representative Ttrooks of Colorado. Mr. Nelll said-ho saw tho hog fall and identified n picture of tho privy The hog wns put up on tho rack, ami ho belloved tho hog was novel cleaned. As to tho tendency of tho work In tho packing Iioubos to lower the morals, Mr. Nolll said ho bollovcd that Is tho caso, "An instnnco." ho snld, "a youiiB girl 1C or 17 yenrs old had to walk across a long room llllcd with men tc go Into a water closet this does not tend to morality, especially when some of thoso mon nro of tho lowost type I will not say tho workers nre Immoral." Mr. Nelll commended tho government govern-ment Inspection, but would not commit com-mit himself on tho stnto Inspection. Ho then described tho hog-stlcklng process, and said: "Ono mnn sticking hogs wns nonrly as clean ns I am: another was covorcd with blood." Ho described ono room whoro girls wero packing dried boot In which Uio girls looked woll nnd clean, Kvcry suggestion mndo to correct tho "nbsoluto brutal Indlfforenco" with which tho employes, especially tho young girls, woro treated, ho said was mot by tho statomont, "Oh, thoj loa't tnlttd that." |