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Show iHEF TRUST A HOLD W Heads of Big Companies Compa-nies Met and Fixed the Prices Chicago, Nov. 14. With the trial of members of the so-called "Beef Trust" set for next Monday In the United States district court on the charge of criminal vlolateion of the Sherman anti-trust act. it became known today that, since tho return of the Indictments, Indict-ments, there has been a complete reorganization re-organization of the National Packing company. In the opinion of government govern-ment officials, this company Is the central point of the so-cnlled trust Private weekly meetings, at which, me government cnarges, prices were fixed, tenitorlos alloted and amounts or Interstate shipments by each firm recKled. have been discontinued and in their place monthly meetings are now held by the directors. Edward Tildn, president of the company and one of the ten men under un-der indictment, remains as president and director. J. Ogden Armour, Edward Ed-ward Morris, the Swifts and the other defendants havo resigned Nine men , instead of 19 now make up the board of directorG The grand jury, acting on the testimony testi-mony of Jerome H Pratt, head of the beef sales department of Armour & Co., regarding the business transacted trans-acted at these weekly secret meetings, meet-ings, found that they had been In vogue long before 1902 when tho government gov-ernment filed Its first bill of injunction injunc-tion and had continued regularly up to the time of tho indictment. Pratt testified that the memorandum showing the amounts to bo shipped by Armour & Co., were taken by him to Thomas G. Lee, dressed beef manager of Armour & Co., each Tuesday, up to the time of his withdrawal; that this Information served as Lee's guidance during the week, that he also was informed of the amounts alloted to Swift & Co . Morris & Co . and the G. H. Hammond company; that written summaries were prepared, each showing show-ing the amount of the wcek'js sales to be used as data for the next private pri-vate meeting; that he had been furnished fur-nished weekjy printed tables showing the margins of difference between cost and selling price at tho other thro plants and that Lee,and other officials had habitually referred to the bijr packing companies-' by- Arbitrary- code letters and not by their corporate names in speaking and writing of them in connection with matters of interstate inter-state commerce. |