Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-01-10
NEAT ONCE A WEEK.
Laws Which Make Food Very Dear to Ger
man Peasants.

man Peasants.
United States Consul Monaghan, of
Mannheim, has made an interesting re-
port to the State Department upon the
prices of meat in Germany, which
shows the relations borne by Ameri-
can 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 i'm
ported diseased meats. This, however,
is by no means on article of faith in any
part of the Empire ;even the most cred
ulous must have grain of salt with
it. The fact that Hungary, where Ba-
varia and parts of South Germany for
a long series of years bought their sup
ply of meats, was, before the law
went into effect, subjected to the Sc
verest and most conscientiously strict
supervision and inspection, goes to
prove the political economic rather than
sanitary protective character of the law.
For so strict was Hungary's super7is-
ion that no unhealthy meat ever came
on to or left the markets for ex-
port. Ever since the law went into eff
feet the press has never ceased to COM
plain of its evil effects to large num-
Der of the Empires population. None
but the large landholders and agrarian
population have been benefited. The
very considerable duty on cattle, SIS per
capita for beef and $3.50 for hogs, add
ed to enormous rates of sea, river and
land freights, has practically rendered
importation impossible, to say nothing
of certain laws the effect of which is to
exclude entirely. At first, owing to
causes connected with the production
of fodder, no direct evil seemed to re-
suit from the new laws, but by degrees
the agrarian population, especially the
large landowners, 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 genera
tions the largest source of Germany's
supply, dropped in her record of sales
from 61,00O,000 forms to 10, 200, 900,
almost 500 per cent. The United
States, in many respects eminently
fitted to feed the world with meats and
grain, was shut out entirely. OF course,
in places forced up. The result was felt
all over the Empire, in Hamburg and
Berlin, in Mannheim and Murich. A
pair of steers increased 175 marks in
price and live beef Is or 20 pfenning,
or SC per 100 pounds. OF course, the
cattle raisers 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,
workingmen, "but carefully, wisely and
safely" Were it not for excessive du.
ties and prohibition meat could be
brought in from foreign States and sold
in competition with the home product
and the cheap fodder of this and later
years should be enough advantage tc
aid home producers to compete. But
no! safe in the maintenance of the
principle of exclusion, no matter how
thin the mask or hollow the covering
by which the real cause is disguised
the large landed proprietors go OF
| forcing up and keeping up prices, never
thinking Of the millions of toilers eat
| ing meat once week now, who under
other and happier circumstances, thai
is, a prevalence of cheaper prices
would eat it twice or thrice week.