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the heavy rains which prevent them from coming at meal times, and then some of them would come<br />
in away after regular hours; and taking everything into consi<strong>de</strong>ration, I believe that it is a bad prece-<br />
<strong>de</strong>nt to set. If they are so anxious to come down here and get a house, let them go to work and oc-<br />
cupy this house and do the necessary, and I sincerely trust that upon your return you will regulate<br />
these matters so that we will be relieved of having to look after and take care of families at our mess.<br />
REQUISITIONS FOR BEDS: I am glad to dote that you have or<strong>de</strong>red the beds requisitioned for<br />
use at Hotel No. 2 and to finish up supplying the vacant rooms at Hotel No. 3. This will certainly be<br />
a great help to us in getting everything fixed up in nice shape. As soon as the logging camp is fin-<br />
ished up, I will do as you suggest and get from there all of the iron beds that were furnished before<br />
your time. However, these beds will all have to be painted over again. As for the mattresses, they<br />
have been used by so many various and varied classes that I would suggest that they be <strong>de</strong>stroyed or<br />
given to some of the Indians, as I am sure the greater portion of them must be unfit for use.<br />
COMMISSARY DEPARTMENT: I note what you say in reference to this <strong>de</strong>partment, and I must<br />
say that we have experienced quite a bit of trouble in getting this <strong>de</strong>partment to function properly; I<br />
must say though that since Mr. Rosenberg has taken charge, it has been running just about like we<br />
would like to see it. Mr. Rosenberg has jumped right in and got his stock straightened up and in<br />
good shape, making one requisition a day against the wholesale <strong>de</strong>partment. In connection with the<br />
commissary, as you know, he is also looking after the meat, ice plant and bread, and of course hav-<br />
ing to look after all this, he gets the kicks from everybody on the Bluff. Of course there are some<br />
people that you can never satisfy, no matter how hard you try, and it seems as if we are unlucky<br />
enough to have that class predominating here. We are unable to receive or accept standing requisi-<br />
tions for ten<strong>de</strong>rloin steak, as some of our people would like to have it, but at the same time we are<br />
trying to give them the best we can. We have in the butcher shop the second butcher that came<br />
from Ceiba, and whereas he can kill and butcher a beef, he is not what you would call a meat cutter,<br />
but is doing the best he can, and we have no complaints at all to make against him. He does his own<br />
butchering and his own meat cutting, and seems t be a very good man. Mr. Rosenberg weighs out<br />
the meat every morning and reweighs what he has left and checks him out every day, and I must say<br />
that the check it very close; of course it is always a little un<strong>de</strong>r, but he has proven to us that this can-<br />
not be avoi<strong>de</strong>d. For instance, we took a hind quarter, he cut and sawed it in half, we had him weigh<br />
it first and after this operation reweigh it, and it showed a loss of a pound and a quarter. So you see<br />
it is practically impossible for him to come out just exactly. I didn't myself believe that this was pos-<br />
sible until it was actually proven.<br />
ICE PLANT: I think I have already written you in reference to the operation of the ice plant, and I<br />
wish to say that it is entirely out of reason to believe that we can continue the operation of this plant<br />
and sell a few of these blocks and keep our cold storage going. The plant is entirely too small for this<br />
purpose, and as these families are increasing in number and they all want ice—in fact, I don't know<br />
of anybody that does not want ice—and you can see what trouble we have trying to supply from<br />
these five little blocks that we get out. So while you are in New Orleans I think it would be a very<br />
good i<strong>de</strong>a for you to take up this matter with your people and see if it would not be possible to get a<br />
good size one; I am sure that we could make money out of it; we can get nearly anything we ask for<br />
ice, even from the laborers, and I do not think it would be a very hard matter to dispose of this small<br />
plant that we have now. Please think this over and give it your attention.<br />
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