The Osceola times., 1882-04-01
American Meat In England.


According to the board OF trade re-
turns nearly 10000 tons of fresh beef
were imported into this country from
America last year. The value of this
enormous quantity of animal food was
nearly f2,0O0 900, or fraction over
pence per pound. What became of it
alp and what effect bad it on the price
Of meat 10 the consumer? To the for
mer question the general reply, it may
be safely assumed, will be. I'VE have
not the least idea:" and TO the latter
"None whatever" The people are few
and far between who can say that they
have seen meat which the butcher ad-
mitted to be American offered for sale,
and still less in number are those who can
tell of any noteworthy fall in price for
years past. Everywhere the butchers
profess to know nothing of the meat
which comes across the Atlantic, and
everywhere joints and legs and chops
and steaks are high in price. Tenpence
per pound for the larger class and IA
pence for the smaller are commonly paid,
and if the customer wants any thing be-
low he must be content, oftener than not,
with an article from which notvithstand.
ing severe treatment with the back of a
knife and prolonged boiling or roasting,
his teeth rebound as they would from a
morsel of ink eraser. How then? What
shall be said? Simply this: That owing
to a childish prejudice the British pub
lic-that great, big stupid" as Thack-
cray used to say-are having sold TO
them as native produce the very article
which they think they don't like at
price at least 20 per cent higher than
they need pay fthey would be sensible.
A story told by Col. Shaw, United States
consul at Manchester, in his latest report
to the department OF state at Washington,
is instructive in this connection. The
colonel asked a retail butcher in that
city if he sold American meat. The
butcher Indignantly replied: "No, sir;
could not sell it here" The colonel re-
lated this incident to friend, who was
prodigiously amused and said: Two
days ago | was coming down - street
in Manchester and saw the same butch
er drop a paper. picked it up and it
was long bill of American meat, and
when he assured you he sold no Ameri-
can beef he forgot that all his stock that
day was American beef, and American
only" Five or six years age large es-
adjustments for the sale by retail of
American beef were opened in Manches-
ter, Sheffield, Liverpool, and indeed in
nearly all the townsin the manufacturing
districts; but in a very short time, though
they considerable undersold the ordin-
ary butchers, they had to close their
doors. People would not buy the meat
because they openly announced where it
came from, and now it would be hard 10
find an American meat store in any o.
those towns. Yet the railway com.
panies are carry ing American meat into
them in great quantities daily from
Liverpool and Hull, and the butchers
shops are always well filed. American
meat comes into London, too, in vast
quantities, but it is seldom heard of ex-
cept at the stores under Cannon street
station. Speak to a working man who
appreciates the good quality and cheap
ness Of the article which is avowedly
imported-there are few such-and he
will tell you that his "missus" does not
like American meat, aud so does not buy
it. Another, shrewder, perhaps, will tell
you he buys the American, and says
nothing about it to his wife, leaving her
TO infer, being pleased with it the while,
that it is English, whereas il he had told
her the state of the case she would take
however, that the prejudice against
American meat is passing away. 1t is,
in fact, difficult to account for its exist
ence. The meat which is "raised" in
America and sent over to this country 10
all found Of better quality than the ma.
tive article. Cattle destined for the
market feed in the summer on the finest
grazing grounds it the world. and in the
winter are fattened on Indian corn,
which is more wholesome and more
economical than any oil-cake. They are
nearly always young, and they are never
over-driven. Hence the beef which
they produce is tender and JUICY and
hear Of that wonderful remedy, st. Jacobs
sweet, and above all it has the recon-
mendation of Cheapness. Why, then,
should not the vast mass of English
working people get the benefit