The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1881-11-10
EXPERIENCES OF STOCK sHIPPER,
sKyER.ycE. KANSAS, Oct. 3lst, 1881.


wish relate of my experience rs stock ship
per- and ask some questions of other shippers, some
questions of the Union Stock Yard proprietors, at
ST. Joe and questions Of commission merchants
NV experience first. For the past three years,
have been buying and shipping stock from this
point, but with varied success; sometimes making
fair profit, and sometimes having to reverse the
returns and subtract from the bottom figures, to
tell where the profit But not quite one year
ago. my mind was rufilcd by receiving set of re-
turns from J. NJ Zook & Co., commission merchants,
that in the .of hogs sent them were four dead
ones each over three hundred pounds in weight.
The weather cool and nice for shipping hogs,
and the idea of dead hog for every six miles from
here to the Union Stock Yards, beat me. then
concluded that had better send man with each
load and the hogs unloaded. The next car
went with myself, arrived safely in St. Joe, and
was soon by the switch engine hauled to the Union
Stock Yards. Not then understanding their way of
doing business sat on the n long tlmc, waiting
for some one to come. 1t in the night; the cold
getting too severe there, began to think what to
do. Seeing light to the westward strnck out for
it. After getting about onehaf the distance, found
myself standing on my head in n deep ditch.
Crawled out and struck for the light; got there,
and found it was a saloon. Went in, took a drink,
and asked the bar-keeper if he knew where could
find any of the Stock Yard men. The reply came
from n corner of the room, where two men were sit
ting playing cards, that he Of them, and as
soon as his game finished. he wonld go with me.
He fnished passed out close to the bar; stopped
a moment, and then with his lantern proceeded to
the Stock Yards turned my car Of hogs into the
pen and then sought the office, and after much talk
ing, got the office boy up, and he let me in. then
called his attention to his book and the number of
r~..l
FROM and asked him what time it unloaded.
The time was about o'clock. a. m, the next
morning after the ear wa shipped from Severance,
at about three, p. m, the previous day tlf the
Stock Yard have lost their memoranda, and
doubt this I have proof of eye-witness.l But as
luck would have it, there dead hogs in the
ear that went with to st. Joseph, that night.
then, from that tine made it point to go or send
some one with each shipped, and all through our
past hot summer, only one hog has been taken out
Of any Of mine dead. / said made il point to
20 or send That meant until about September last,
when ran the risk of letting a of hogs 90. The
car was No. 369. In that were 64 fine hogs,
consigned TO J. w. Zook & Co., st. Joe, Mo. lmag-
inc my surprise, when the returns came, and the
price they sold back the report showed that
instead of the si1ty-four head of hogs that had
shipped that at that time in st. Joseph worth
at 1918; but the nine additional hogs given me
failed to hold out in weight, by l,4lO pounds,
much as the sixty-four did. Thus, shippers can sec
that at least 5000 was there appropriated to
one that was not the legal owner Immediately
teegraphed Mr.. Zook about the error, and soon got
a letter from him, stating that he hal got track Of
the errer, and would look it up. Thinking that
things would he all right, still went ahead with
shipping hogs. Finally, by Mr.. Zook, ear No, and
ear No. both shipped to him at St. Joseph, were
both reported back and had by him beed shipped to
Chicago consigned to Dixon & Byers. When those
returns reached me, think of how pleased must
have felt-a shortage of only four thousand pounds
of hogs at e, ,25 here ut home, loss of only sOOO
Add the other hundred on the exchanged car load,
if that is the way it DONE and the nice little sum
of about $4,000 has found its way to where it did
not belong But the chapter is not finished yet. On
the 18th of October, Messrs- Snively & Mo shipped
ear No. - to Dickson & Byers, Chicago. There
were tynine hogs put in the car, and when the re-
turns came back. how many hogs do you think got
through the gauntlet to Chicagoi Just forty-One-
only slight mistake of eighteen heavy hogs in one
car. At the price those that got to Chicago sold,
only about slJ0.00 graees the pocket Of some hog
thief for certainly the that put away the pro-
ceeds knew it not his own. But, hold-the clos
ing section Before the arrival of the returns
of car No. =, they shipped car No. :, to Dickson &
Bycrs, Chicago, and the returns for that
here How nice-only little !, GOO pounds loss
from Severance to Chicago. Now, my questions.
Shippers what ought the fair rate Of shrinkage be
from Severance to ST. Joseph, cars of hogs aver
aging 1000 pounds per car, and then from ST. Jo-
scph to Chcagol Docs your dcath-rate run as high
when you see the hogs unloaded, when YOU donti
Have you ever had reason to believe that designing
Lar haac and ranft