Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-11-15

J6CI OF American Uoei, anu sOtuouOW
or other almost all these writer's and
speakers seemed to have got possessed
| of the idea that the beef we were
getting from America was produced
on the cheap grazing lands of the Far
| West; for all their calculations were
based on the cost of production there,
and not in the older States, such as
Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and
Pennsylvania, where, in point of tact,
the greater portion of the American
beef that has arrived in Britain has
come from, and where the cost of
production is very different from what
| it is in Texas and the other more
| westerly States. Advocates of the
trade told us land tell us still) that
| America could boast of producing al
lesst a moderate quantity of as fine
beef as has ever been raised in Scot
land, England or Ireland, and from
this they would 60 on TO quote the
marvellously low cost of beef produce
ton in America, giving invariably the
figures which really referred to the
raising of the worst quality of Ameri~
can beef. A recent instance OF this
may be given. A Nebraska stock
farmer writes on the 18th of August
to Scotch newspaper to correct re-
mark made at a cattle show dinner
by Mr.. Ferguson of Kinmundy, Aber-
deenshire, to the effect that American
beef was being sold in Liverpool for
the London market as Aberdeen beef,
After stating that the difference be-
tween corn.fed and turnip-fed beef
will prevent this from being done,
and that he has had some experience
in handling beef in Scotland, the wrl
ter proceeds -" do not know how
it Tthe American beef might look at
ter going there to Britain but this l
do know, that we can sell here better
beef than / ever saw in Scotland. If
Mr.. Ferguson would come out here L
could show him as fine cattle as he
ever saw in the showing at Mintlaw
or any other place, which | can ship
to Glasgow, aud sell at Cd. pound,
and get we'll paid for raising. have
not got so large herd as some. l
left Scotland twenty years ago poor
cowboy, but will sell this fall 300
that will weigh nigh $4,000 pounds,
live weight. Said steers are three
years old. We have no sickness here
among cattle. Some of the large cat
tie owners west of me will sell this
season, some 5000, some 10000 and
some as high as $4,000 head of cattle
all very good beef, but not corn fed,
though as good as great deal of tar
nip.fed cattle. They will be sold
here for I'D. per pound, live weight
and can be delivered in England for
AID. at present rates of freight. Meth
err Mr.. Ferguson nor any other farm
err need believe that we cannot supply
England with meat. Let us find a
market, we will raise plenty" These
are no new statements !; they have
been made again and again during
the past twelvemonth, and at every
point they are misleading. / frankly
admit that there is much larger
number of really good cattle (besides
shorthorns) in America than | was
prepared to find. Is such states as
Illinois, Kentucky. Indiana and Ohio
there are a great many more beef cat
tie than expected there were, that
would rank among Scotch cross steers,
but in those large western herds re-
ferred to by the writer quoted, not
pound of beef is raised that could be
placed on an equality with an aver
age pound of Scotch or English beef;
there is not one animal in every thous-
and that could be classed amongst
even second-rate Scotch herd. Sup
posing the very best of American beef
were as good as any ever this Ne
braska farmer ever saw in Scotland,
he deceives himself and others Gas
was shown pretty clearly in my last
letter. in believing and stating that
he can sell it at profit at Cd. per
pound in Glasgow--sevenpence would
not pay him. But what is most
misleading in his remarks as we'll as
those of many other writer's and
speakers on the subject, is his placing
of the immense herds shat roam
about on the prairies of Texas and
the other western States on O. level
with the prime or best quality of beef
cattle in the older states; or, in other
words, in including Texas, Kansas,
Colorado, and Nebraska beef in that
class of American beef which is de-
clared with such emphasis to be as
good as any ever seen in Scotland,
and in using the figures which refer
to it in calculating the price at which
prime American beef can be sold IN
the British markets. A clothier who
buys one web of cloth at As. yard,
and another at SIS, and says he can
sell both at As, makes no greater mis-
take. If these many thousands OF
cattle are to be sold at three cents, or
I'D. per pound, live weight, or about
SIX cents, or Sd. per pound of dressed
beef, they must be an inferior lot
even of common western cattle, for
the rubbish which / saw picked up
for the packeries cost just about that
figure. The best class of common
western cattle-the cattle az Texas,
Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska and the
Territories-sella at from 4 to J cents
per pound, live weight, which would
make the cost price in Glasgow ;sbout
sd. per pound. But the mistake lies
in its being supposed that this quality
of Beet is being exported to British
markets. 1t has never been, at least
beyond a mere experiment, and is
never likely to be. 1t is fully recog-
nized by all actually engaged IN the
trade and by many others who
think over the matter carefully and
impartiaily, that nothing but the very
best quality of American beef will
ever meet with reasonable favor in
Britain, or really pay for expectation.
AS already stated, little beef of Sec
ond quality is being exported just
now, but shippers themselves say
that there is danger of this damag-
ing the trade; and as soon as cold
weather sets in larger supplies OF the
best quality of beef are available, the
thn shinnino, of SECOND rate beef will