The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-07-13
Pork Packing Establishment.

At Il meeting OF the Board of Trade
lleld last Monday morning the discus.
sion turned upon the subject of pork
packing establishments, and the senti-
mcnt WAS unanimous in favor of work
Ing To secure the location Of such an
enterprise here. Ii We are correctly in
formed this branch of business is not
repre- scnlcd IN the State, Ia any CON
siderable extent, probably for
the reason that Minnesota has not been
hog raising country. But within the
past few years the farmers have been
putting less in wheat and more in corn
which is found to yield well, and this
is becoming more general in the South
crn portion of the State. Farmers long
since gave up the idea Of raising corn to
sell, and large proportion of the
amount produced is fed to hogs and
cattle. In the more Northern part OF
the State where corn cannot DO raised
with any success stock raising of course
is not followed; but in this section
where it is being successfully carried
on, it is To the interest of the farmers
and business men to enquire into the
matter, and If possible to determine
what plan is best TO create paying
market for hogs, not only the ordinary
market price. but if possible to adopt
some plan winch will he of still greater
benefit 10 the farmers of this part of the
State.
A packing establishment affords a
home market for hogs, sand in nearly ev-
cry easel is enabled to pay higher price
for the product than could be done were
they bought for shipment, Us there is
great advantage In treights in the ship
ment OF dressed instead of live meat.
To the farmers then would would 20
direct profit us the result of such an en-
tcrprisc. The writer has known frequent
instances in which the price paid for
hogs by packing houses was from 25cts
TO 40cts per hundred above that paid by
shippers. The direct profit to Il county
or district from this, then, is a
mere matter of calculation, as it is
far to suppose that the same rule would
follow here. This then is a strong rca-
son why an effort should he made by
our pcop'c to secure the location of
such an establishment here. In addi-
| ton to this such IA business would cause
All immediate outlay of from $4,000 to
800, 900 IN buildings and the necessary
appliances, and that would of course he
permanent additions to the wealth of
our city. Steady employment would be
! furnished To one hundred or more men
and hundreds of thousands of dollars
would be annually disbnrscd by the
company. These are sufficient reasons
for work on the part of our citizens.
The benefits spoken ofso far, ARE those
to the city and country around, and the
question will naturally arise, what in
duccments are there for capitalists to
invest their money in this bushes in
Mankato. Briefly they are these: Our
city has railroad facilities unexcelled
by any in Southern Minnesota, with
direct connections with st. Paul, Omaha
Chicago and Milwaukee; there is
no packing house nearer us than Sioux
City; our railroad connections are such
as To mako nearly the whole OF Southern
Minnesota tributary to this city, and
upon the completion of the Mankato,
StCIoud Il Austin railroad IN extensive
territory will be brought to our doors
the number OF hogs tattcncd for market
this season III this and Immediately adj
joining counties will be about 10000,
AMI in the counties which have this for
their central point the number will
reach fully 100000. AS even One-half
vi lIllS Woult run W
capacity a very large establishment, it
will he readily seen that there is no lack
of material with winch to work. Our
city is thriving, improvements of every
kind are going rapidly forward, our
country is prosperous, and we are salts
fled that a packing house, while filling
field now vacant in our business In
terests, would meet with a success
which would fully justify the invest.
ment.
Our citizens are awake TO the impor-
lance of such an enterprise, and will
work hard to secure it. The Board of
, Trade appointed Messrs. S. F. Barney,
j. G. Noe and M. q. Willard as special
committee whose duty it is to cores
pond with parties with the view of in
ducing them to locate in our city in this
business.