The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1876-10-21
agricultural department.
CONDUCTED BY ALBERT CHAPMAN.
Prospects of Beef Production.


vor of freight over long distances re
duced the value of land near large cit
les, and increased the value of farms a.
the far west that as the western farm
er could send his cattle to market for 6
very small proportion of their value
and could produce as large, and per-
baps larger, amount of beef upon q
hundred acres as the eastern farmer
whose land cost two to five times as
much, the odds were all In favor OF the
western farmer. 1t Is true that the
railroad has been a great democratic
leveier has given larger comparative
profit to the western than the eastern
beef-pfoducers in other words, the
railroad reaches out to the extremities
and brings them all within few hours
of the great markets. Every improve
ment in transportation benefits most
the distant cheap production, and thus
benefits also the consumer. But as we
boast of our institutions because they
are productive Of the greatest good to
the greatest number,w must not com.
plain Of anything which produces that
result.
The British farmer seems now likely
to be placed in the same relation to the
beef-prDducers of the United States as
the eastern farmers have been to the
western; that is, he must compete, in
his own market, with the beef produced
upon lands of one-fourth the value of
his own, and sent to his own market.
three to four thousand miles, for one
tenth of its market value. This raises
the value OF cheap lands of The United
States to nine-tenths of the value OF
the dear lands of England, so far as the
may cause as great change in British
agriculture as have the railroads in our
eastern agriculture. There can be no
doubt that American farmers can pro
duce bullock dressing eight hundred
pounds for so per cent. of the cost of
the same animal in England, under the
present rental of the English farmer.
The improvements lately made in
shipping fresh beef on voyages across
the Atlantic appear to open the best
markets of England and Europe to the
competition of American beef-produc
ers. Mr.. II. G. Eastman of New York
city has alone shipped about 900 head
since last October, and sold them in
competition with the best beef pro-
duced in England. The business re.
quires great deal of attention, and
has been attended with some partial
failures OH few of the voyages for
lack of ice in the rsfrigerating cham
bers. but his success has been satisfac.
tory on the whole, for he has gone on
enlarging his facilities until he has re.
frigerating chambers fitted up on some
seventeen steamers, having capacity
Of from 100 to 400 head upon each
steamer. AS he has been able to deliver
in the markets Of London, Liverpool
and Glasgow nearly 10000 head the
first year of the experiment, we may
conclude that he will double and per-
haps quadruple this the second year.
Other parties are also entering the
field, and have shipped several car0oas
under what they deem an improved
method Of refrigeration, which consists
In forcing a cold mixture of ice and
salt through long circuit Of pipes in
the meat chamber. 1t is claimed that
these cold pipes effectually cool the
air and condense the moisture in the
meat chamber by congealing it, thus
rendering the air dryer, and more per-
fectly preventing any change In the
condition of the meat.
Live cattle have also been shipped
successfully to some extent, but this
costs more than to ship the dressed
beef, with greater risks, and therefore
the latter method Is likely to superseds
the former. This new market for beef
must be OF the greatest interest to the
western farmer, and renders 1t certain
that beef production is to be compare
lively more profitable during the next
than the last decade.
1 have spoken OF the discouragementl
to the eastern farmer from the cheap.
ness OF transportation for long distan-
ces, of cattle raised upon cheap fertile |
lands, and the natural inference would
he that his encouragement arose from
fall in the price of meat; but this Is
great mistake, for II we examine the
average price of beef in New York In |
1880. when freights were more than
double what they are now. we find the
average of all qualities to haye been
1-5.cents. and the number of head re-
ceived, 227 600, whilst the number re-
ceived In 1879. or fifteen years later,
was 453 900, and the price IL cents per
pound, SO that, although the number
doubled, the rice also increased more
Than 80 per cent. on gold basis. do
not see any occasion for discour-
agement to the eastern farmer In the
production of beef. His opportunities
have encouraged him with an increase
of price. and If he had studied the bus
mess of feeling for beef in the most
economical manner, and, like his Eng
lish contemporary, had produced steers
weighing 400 to 1900 pounds at "a to
80 months old, he would have found
this the most profitable line of farming
except dairying,
When farmers find that their spe-
cialty is likely to be overdone, as to
quantity, by new producers, their pro-
per course Is to improve tho quality,