, 1882-04-21
Market classification OF Live Stock.

readers to our lists, to whom the subject
will be new, and it is impossible for
even the oldest hands to have too
thorough knowledge of this important
subject, technical definition of the
terms employed at the greatest market
in the world, cannot fail to be Of inter-
nst even to those who are tolerably
conversant with them.
First in Importance come hogs, as
tbeir valuation as well as number far ex-
coed any other class OF live stock. The
,r;ncipal grade is common to good
mixed packing grades, usually designa-
Tod as ''common to good mixed" This
grade is principal, because, notwith-
Standing the progressing improvement,
the mass Of hogs IRE below what would
nroperly be called good quality. 1t in
rrlndes, ordinarily, all that are left out
of an average car load Of hogs after the
strictly prime heavy barrows, smooth
ISO and 200 ib hogs, and the poorest
oLins and unmerchantable heavy hogs
have been sorted out. Assuming that
Wa have an average load of sixty hogs
inst as they would run from the farmers
feed lot, we IL show how each grade is
disnosed of by sorting, though the ex-
tant of this ing or selecting depends
entirely upoa the general state OF the
r,arkef. for instance, when the supply is
i;gbt and the demand usually active, the
salesman who is supposed to be good
;mdoe. can sell his hogs straight" or
lust as they arrive, to the packers for
more money than could be got by cut
ting the load up. But to return to the
subject; out of lot OF sixty hogs taking
about eight of the choicest, the "Phila.
delphia and lard hogs" would be disposed
of. the eight hog" man would get about
ffteen choice hogs, averaging $50 to 26O
nounds; then after taking out seven skips
and coarse culls there would be left
thirty hogs, which properly come under
tbe head Of Common to good mixed"
If the salesman IL ought he would not be
justified in selling out his Philadelphia
s'top " he might sort out all OF his rough
hackers, light hogs and skips, and sell
the bulk of the lot under the head of
sheavy packing and shipping"
1t is impossible to observe any gen
eral rule for selling hogs, for the reason
that no two lots will have just the same
proportion of the different grades. One
man might have such large proportion
of good heavy hogs that buyer would
be willing to tGke skips and ell at good
round price, for the sake of getting the
choice sock, while another man might
have half dozen or so prime hogs, the
balance of very low quality Herein
lies the value Of a competent salesman
who is o good Judge. Oftentimes very
high price can be got for few hogs,
which leaves the majority of such poor
quality as to be- obliged to sell at ex-
tremciv low rates; and as rule, it does
not l. to sort out the top hogs, unless
the majority are Of good quality. The
term good mixed naturally implies
smooth, fat hogs without pregnant sows,
and reasonably free from "skips" or
light, tail-end pigs and stays, though
frequently including good light hogs.
The safest rule for country shippers to
follow, is to see that their shipments in
clude as many heavy packing and ship
ping and choice light hogs, and few
skips and common mixed as possible.
Cattle in our marketreports are classed
as follows: Extra" being the highly
bred and thoroughly ripe animals Or.
dinarily "export" steers include we'll
fatted l4000 1900 lb cattle, and of rule
the choicest selections OF the Offering ex-
cept at times when Christmas beeves are
coming forward. 1t IS O common belief
that export cattle are only the most
highly finished animals, but this is erro-
neous as plain from the fact that cattle
are constantly being bought for export
alive in greater or lesser numbers; but
drove of cattle of the quality referred
to as extra is not, by any means.
common sight as this, the greatest mar
ket on the globe. Shipping cattle usually
include steers from 100 lbs upwards;
good TO choice" steers are those fat and
averaging 1250@ 1850 lbs, while medium,
fair and common designate the next
lower qualities, and too frequently rep
resent the bulk of the offerings.
Mixed butcher stock" includes cows,
bulls, thin steers, stays ard oxen.
"Stockers and feeders" are young cat
tie suitable for stocking the pastures or
feed lots, while "milkers and springers"
are fresh cows and cows in calf.
Range cattle" include through
Texas, Northern Texans, or those tn
have been driven up North when young,
and .grazed in Kansas, Colorado, Ne
braska, Wyoming or Dakota. These
latter are usually in better condition and
sell for about SOC D 100 lbs. more
than the former. Americans"
are the original cattle of the north
ern States and Territories, while the off
spring of improved bulls and Texas, or
northern native COWS, are known as
"half- breeds"
Sheep are largely sold to shippers and
exporters, if good, but to local butchers
II OF poor quality, while well bred brit
lean lots are usually taken to the coun-