The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1884-10-24
WESTERN CATTLE TRAILS.
STOCK YARDS IN THE CITY OF THE
GREAT LAnE.
How Cattle are Slaughtered. Brrssrd
and shipped 10 Eastern and Euro
pean Markets-A Great Industry.

the heart OF the city and about three
squares south of the city line, says a
Chicago letter to the New York World,
are situated the largest cattle yards, be-
ing undoubtedly the largest stock mar
ket in the world. They were constructed
In 1865, and have capacity of 20, 600 cat
tie, $50, 900 hogs, 10, 600 sheep, and 800
horses. One popularity of this market,
and its greatest advantage, is that it is
strictly cash market The moment q
sale is made the company's officials
weigh the cattle, and their certificate of
weight is the basis of all negotiations,
and the cash is paid to the owner. Each
shipper or owner is furnished with a
separate yard or pen for the safe keeping,
feeding and watering of his stock, with
but one charge for yardage during the
entire time his stock remains on the
market. The market here is principally
for cattle and hogs. There is consider
able business done in horses and sheep,
which is rapidly growing, but in these
latter animals this point has not yet sur
passed other markets.
Seventeen different railroads center in
the yards. From these there were re-
ceived during the year. and there were
also driven in the yard, 1879, 044 cattle,
80, 1928 calves, 5,640,G25 hogs. 1891
sheep and 10, 255 horses, in 1876, 03S cars
and there were shipped during the same
year 966, 7jS cattle, II, G71 caves, 49,
392 hogs; the difference between the
number received and shipped being that
which is bought by the Chicago buyers
for killing or stock raising. The num-
Der of carloads receive and shipped
during this one year would make about
5000 trains of thirty-one cars each, or,
if all coupled in one train, would extend
from New York to ST. Louis and back
again, or, to give figures, ?, JAG miles.
The cattle received and sold here vary
from the finest thoroughbred down to
the cheapest grade. The largest num-
Der of cattle, however, may be classified
as home bred and range cattle, these lat
ter coming from the vast cattle ranges of
Montana, Colorado and Texas. The
poorest grades of cattle are sold and used
for canning purposes, the best for stock
breeding or fattening here for export to
Europe and for the beef dressers of
Chicago. There being so much interest
now conferred in what is known in New
York as Chicago dressed beef" your
correspondent paid a visit to the saugh-
ter-houses and refrigcrators located on
the edge of the Union stock yards. The
Enclosures of this establishment here
cover ground space of about /, 400 by
400 feet. beside the necessary room for
railroad turnouts and switches whereon
to receive the ice and ship the beef.
Let us now follow steer from the
cattle-pen to the market in New York or
London. The bullock to be killed is
driven from the Enclosure to a separate
pen and thence into a narrow stall, where
he is alone. Here he is stunned by one
or two blows upon the head, which have
double OBJECTION to disable him, but
the more important to drive all the blood
possible to the brain and forward parts.
After this chain is fastened to him and
through a sliding door he is hauled upon
what is called the bed of the slaughter
house. Overhead throughout the entire
building is system of iron tracks inter
secting and connected by switches, to
which are attached sheaves and blocks
and hooks, and these, being connected
with powerful steam machinery, may be
run in any direction. After the steer
is put upon the bed his forefeet are so
placed as to open as wide as possible the
opening which is to be made in his ar
teries and thus make sure of the per-
feet and cutirc exit of blood He is
again knocked in the forehead until his
muscles relax, when a man opens with a
sharp knife the aorta, the largest artery
in the body at the lower throat. His
head is then entirely severed from the
body and by means of a chain on the
hindlegs he is hoisted clear of the floor
and is showed into another place to make
room for a fresh victim lie is again
lowered on the floor, where he is placed
on his back, his feet taken off, the
skin taken from the belly and sides,
the breast and crotch sawed open and the
caul taken off. This caul surrounding
the stomach contains the pure fat in the
steer, and is washed and ceansed to be
converted into silet oil. The carcass is
then wiped over, washed free from blood
stains and other impurities, is hooked
and hoisted up part way the tail cut out,
furnishing ample material for the cele-
brated ox-tail soup, the rump skinned,
and after being hoisted clear of the floor
the two men beat down the fell on the
hindlegs, another takes the hide off the
back, the entrals are removed and the
animal is sawn down the spine from the
tail; the back is thoroughly washed off
and wiped and split down the middle;
he is then hoisted further and run on
another track to more thoroughly drain
out the blood, and the hide is entirely
cut from forelegs and neck. This is
done in such neat, careful way with
clean knives and hands that these hides
bring an extra price in the market. The
neck is split and the carcass is trimmed,
carefully cutting off all ragged pieces of
fat or meat, all blood stains or bruises
1t is again thoroughly washed in two
waters and wiped dry, when it is allowed
to hang at the back Of the beds near the
cooler, where, after being allowed to
thoroughly drip some fifteen minutes or
more, it is again wiped and trimmed and
showed in the cooler to be entirely dripped
of its remaining animal heat. The mum
Der of men actu lily handling the animal
from the pen to the cooler is forty.two.
IL 30 l..