Omaha daily bee., 1884-09-23

same as those for ity.dressed beef-pcs.
sibly a fraction lower-but they follow
the price Of city dressed right up when it
rises. The price of refrigerated beef in
all the towns between here and Albany is
10{ and IL cents.
My friend Tommy Loughran OF
Washington Market has been spending
his vacation in Maine, and he took pains
when riding around the country to stop
all the butchor-wagons and interview the
drivers on the price Of beef, The uni
form rule he found to be, for light beef,
IL cents for such as has been selling in
this city for q and s. cents.
81 have no opposition to western
dressed beef, nor do | take any stock in
the poison theory, but don't think New
Workers will ever like it as we'll ga they
do beef that is slaughtered here. | don't
think it is making much Roadway in
New York, for | understand that Essex
Market is to let, and | am told that
Swift's refrigerator in Kingston has be-
come closed for several weeks. l don't
think these extreme prices will continue
long. There Is an old Western saying
when snakes 60 blind the price of beef
goes up Well, snakes 90 blind, l be-.
lieve, when they shed their skins in
August, and as that operation is now be-
ing performed we may look for lower
prices when it Is over.
Export trade is dull and shippers are
losing money every day. Last year at
this time New York was sending out t..
600 cattle a iweek, against 1900 now.
Exporters can make no meney while
prices are high. and, indeed, they have
been losing since Jan. l."
G. L. Swift, tee head of Swift's Chi.
cago dressed beef business, was asked
in regard to the effect of his meat on
prices.
"Well, said he, ''if our beef was not
being sold here prices would be at least a
cent higher all round than they are. The
prices of cattle In the west regulates us
here. There is at present considerable
demand for live cattle in this city, and
If we were not here with our dressed beet
that demand would be increased of course.
This demand is supplied chiefly by Chi
cage, and whether the beef is slaughtered
here or there it remains the same. But
dressed beef can be shipped much cheap
er than live cattle, and there we have an
advantage. But speaking of prices, they
are not high in proportion to the supply
of cattle. The short horn crop of last
year has made beeves unusually scarce,
and as the demand is brisk the prices are
necessarily forced up. There's certainly
no problem about it. Supply and demand
govern prices always"
What about your beef being pol
soned2"
"Simply q good advertisement. The
statement has done more for us than any
thing, else could have done. IL
prompted an investigation into our
methods, and that is just what WI invite
at all times. We came out with clean
hands and business booming. Our
slaughter houses at Chicago are accessible
at all times, and the public is free to go
in at will. We never require passes"
How is your beef received2'
$50 well that some butchers buy 1t and
sell it for home slaughtered, and custom
ers can't tell the difference. The best
hotels in the city use it with entire sat
isfaction and the demand is steadily in
creasing."
SIT is said that your beef is dry"
"WhGt do you mean by dryl"
mo blood init. 1t won't make gravy?'
'As far as blood is concerned, you are
right. We follow Biblical teaching in
that respect, and got rid of every drop
of blood we can. We don't want blood
in our beef. But l don't understand
how that makes it dry. I'll tell you a
fact that is not generally known. The
animal heat in a carcass of beef is due to
the presence of certain elements that
weigh something, and beef that is not
refrigerated does not lose it, but by our
system of freezing forty-eight hours we
find we decrease the weight about two
per cent, and during the transit from
Chicago to this city l per cent more,
making our beef 3 per cent lighter than
it was before going into the coolers. This
comes from these elements being driven
out. So you may say that people get
more meat for their money in buying of
US than of home slaughterers. And it is
hardly necessary to add that beef will
keep pure much longer when the animal
heat is all driven out. Our beef, when
it reaches New York has been five days
killed, and yet the hottest weather can
not spoil it In forty-eight hours. In our
shipments to London we once had a yes
sci delayed tor forty-three days, but the
beef brought the usual price when sold
not being injured in the least.
81 think it lit likely that the price of
beef will fall off SOON"