The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1891-07-18
NOT AFRAID OF RUSSIA,
But Other Countries with Pork Products May
Become Dangerous Rivals Of America.

A Journal reporter yesterday called at
the packing-house of Kingan IL Co. and
made inquiry as to what was thought at
that establishment of the report received
by cable that plan was on foot to fight
American bacon in European markets by
the Russian Bacon Company, for whom it
IL said the Russian government las erected
q packing house at Craze and leased 1t to
the company at nominal figure for twen-
ty- one years. In addition TO this the cable
gram states that the government has af-
forded the company special railway facil-
tiles. whereby It is able to deliver its
per hundred weight less than the freight
cost from Chicago.
After reading the cablegram John NJ.
Shaw, of Kingan & Co.. remarked that he
had understood that Russian house had
for some time been trying to open up q
trade in bacon. But" continued Mr..
Shaw. there is nothing for Americans to
be afraid of from that source. 1t is simply
nonsense to talk about il. We had better
in the years to come, so far as
the pork product is concerned, be afraid
of New Zealand. Australian. or even South
American compe titiOD. The story that fif-
teen practical dressers have been sent to
Russia to cut up pork ought to carry with
IL no more weight than that fifteen men had
been sent to the Congo to raise corn to COM
pete with American corn. Russia has no
system of railroads as We have IN this cOun-
try to bring hogs TO a great killing center.
and 1t will probably be many years before
she develops such system"
DO You know anything of the quality of
the Russian hogP
''Much of the pork nay be lean. That is
no objection. The taste of the public
every here. not only In Europe but in this
country, il getting more and more for lean
meat. The American hog grower should
Improve In this direction and to meet tins
demand. He feeds too much corn, and not
enough heterogeneous food. which would pro-
duce more lean and muscle. An over
production of corn, OF q high price for hogs,
brings about "A big hog crop aud over-feed-
ing. Farmers try TO make the heaviest hogs
posi- BILE. A LOT OF hogs will usually be- two
birds fat. The meat may be- excellent.
out there IS large amount of
waste. especially when lard is sell
ing at such ridiculOnslv low price
as it has been for some time. The fat makes
the cost of suitable meats high on account
OF the amount of trimming that has to be
done. THIS. of course. reduces the packers
margin. The best safeguard tina: the Amer
lean hog grower can have for his product is
hogs that are neither too large nor too
fat"
Have you ever heard of Russian pork in
the London marketP
mo. There's plenty of pork in the mar
kets of Europe without the Russian. Dem
mark, Norway. Sweden. Germany and other
countries of Europe raise great numbers of
pigs. an pork that is more to the civilized
taste than that of Russia. These have shut
the doors of Europe against Russian pork.
A IN Nc anrl-s ~ M mr. lNara
able to consume our own pork products.
1t is only when an unusually large number
of hogs are fed that there is urgent demand
for a foreign outlet"
James Cunning. who is informed on the
subject. was next interviewed. This
factory" said Mr.. Cunning, lis at GraiZe,
in the province or district of Tambov,
about $50 miles southeast of Moscow. The
experienced dressers or cutters they have
there are Irishmen from the city of Linn
erick. and they are thoroughly capable
men. The price there paid for hogs of from
12O to 16O pounds weight Is from pig to
roubles pood. A pood is thirty-six
pounds and ;,. roubls h is about 60 cents in
a week; that is SIS. Pork-cutters in In
dianapOlis get In the winter as high as S21
a week. and in the summer sl5. The Lin
erick men are not fond of Russian winters
with snow four or five feet deep. The or
binary laborer In the Russian packing
house is paid % cents q day. and l under
stand they kill only about two hundred
hogs q day-a competition not to be feared
unless 1t grows. Two thirds of the hogs
killed there are for lard and sausages The
lard hogs weigh five hundred pounds and
over. 1t 10 about eight hundred miles from
Grsize to the Baltic. to Riga or Mernel,
and there are two railroads going there.
But they have not facilities for getting
large quantities of nogs as we have in this
country. and il will be years before they
can have"