EX-24

POWER OF ATTORNEY


     Know all by these presents, that the undersigned hereby
constitutes and appoints each of JoBeth G. Brown and Laura H.
Reeves and their successors in office and their designees,
signing singly, the undersigned's true and lawful attorney-in-
fact to:

     (1)     execute for and on behalf of the undersigned, in the
undersigned's capacity as an officer and/or director of Anheuser-
Busch Companies, Inc. (the "Company"), Forms 3, 4, and 5 in
accordance with Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 and the rules thereunder and any other documents necessary
to facilitate the filing of such Section 16 forms, including
without limitation the Form ID (Uniform Application for Access
Codes to File on Edgar);

     (2)     do and perform any and all acts for and on behalf of
the undersigned which may be necessary or desirable to complete
and execute any such Form 3, 4, or 5 and any document necessary
to facilitate the filing of such Form, complete and execute any
amendment or amendments thereto, and timely file and facilitate
the filing of such form with the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission and any stock exchange or similar authority;
and

     (3)     take any other action of any type whatsoever in
connection with the foregoing which, in the opinion of such
attorney-in-fact, may be of benefit to, in the best interest of,
or legally required by in terms of compliance with the securities
laws, the undersigned, it being understood that the documents
executed by such attorney-in-fact on behalf of the undersigned
pursuant to this Power of Attorney shall be in such form and
shall contain such terms and conditions as such attorney-in-fact
may approve in such attorney-in-fact's discretion.


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     The undersigned hereby grants to each such attorney-in-fact
full power and authority to do and perform any and every act and
thing whatsoever requisite, necessary, or proper to be done in
the exercise of any of the rights and powers herein granted, as
fully to all intents and purposes as the undersigned might or
could do if personally present, with full power of substitution
or revocation, hereby ratifying and confirming all that such
attorney-in-fact, or such attorney-in-fact's substitute or
substitutes, shall lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue of
this power of attorney and the rights and powers herein granted.
The undersigned acknowledges that the foregoing attorneys-in-
fact, in serving in such capacity at the request of the
undersigned, are not assuming, nor is the Company assuming, any
of the undersigned's responsibilities to comply with Section 16
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

     The Power of Attorney shall remain in full force and effect
until the undersigned is no longer required to file Forms 3, 4,
and 5 with respect to the undersigned's holdings of and
transactions in securities issued by the Company, unless earlier
revoked by the undersigned in a signed writing delivered to the
foregoing attorneys-in-fact.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has caused this Power of
Attorney to be executed as of this 18th day of June, 2004.



/s/James F. Hoffmeister
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                Signature

James F. Hoffmeister
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                Print Name