Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-11-14
MEAT ONCE A WEEK,
Laws Which Make Food Very Dear to
German Peasants.

United States Consul Monaghan of Mann
helm has made an interesting report to the
State department upon the prices OF meat in
Germany, which shows the relations borne by
American material to the food market of that
country. He says: The legislation passed to
keep out foreign hogs is said to have been based
upon fears of imported diseased meats This
however, is by no means an article of faith in
any part of the empire; even the most credulous
must have grain of salt with it. The fact
that Hungary, where Bavaria and parts of
South Germany for a long series of years
bought their supply of meats, was, before the
law went into effect, subjected to the severest
| and most conscientiously strict supervision and
inspection, goes to prove the political econo-
INC rather than sanitary protective character
OF the law. For so strict was Hungary's snper-
vision that no unhealthy meat ever came on to
or left the markets for export. Ever since the
law went into effect the press has never ceased
to complain of its evil effects to a large number
of the empires population. None but the
large land-holders and Ggrarian population
have been benefited. The very considerable
duty on cattle, 50 per capita for beef and 81 so
for hogs added to enormous rates of sea, river
and land freights has practically rendered i'm
portation impossible, to say nothing of certain
laws the effect of which is to exclude entirely
production of fodder, no direct evil seemed to
result from the new laws, but by degrees the
agrarlan population, especially the large land
owners, saw their chance and made the most of
it. Since that time meat has gone up, and sad
to say, grain also: and Austria, for generations
the largest source of Germany s supply dropped
in her record of sales from 81, 500 900 horins to
b. 100000, almost 500 per cent. The United
States, Ill many respects eminently fitted to
feed the world with meats and grain, was shut
out entirely. OF course, the prices went up
naturally and were in places forced up. The
result was felt all over the empire, in Hamburg
and Berlin in Mannheim and Munich. pair
of steers increased IT'S marks In price and live
! beef 10 and 20 pfenning, or 5 cents n hundred
pounds. Or course, the cattle rasers gained
by and praised while they Endorsed the new
laws; but how about the millions who find meat
too dear and bread going up because of the
same kind OF legislation? Their only resort
will be to the field fruits, potatoes and various
vegetables. by all means protect" say city
people, working men, but carefully. wisely
and safely" We're 1t not for excessive duties
| and prohibition meat could be brought in from
foreign states and sold i'll competition with the
home product; and the cheap fodder of this
and later years should be enough advantage to
aid home producers to compete. But no. safe
III the maintenance Of the principle OF exclu-
sion, no matter how thin the mask or hollow
the covering by which the real cause is dis
gulsed, the large landed proprietors go on fore
ing up and keeping up prices, never thinking
of the millions of toilers eating meat once a
| week now, who under other and happier cir
! cumstances, that is, a prevalence OF cheaper
prices, would eat it twice or thrice week."