Southwest-sentinel. [volume] (Silver City, N.M.) 1883-189?, 1893-07-04

Denver every few days.
Quite a large number Of alfalfa
fed steers have been shipped out
of Arizona during the past week
and not a few Of them have been
finished on the newly cat crop.
During the first five months Of
1898, Chicago packers slaughtered
35,459 more cattle than during the
same months in 1892. The total
number handled was nearly $780,
600 head. This is 100000 more
than we're slaughtered at Kansas
City, Omaha and ST. Louis togeth-
er.
The run Of trail herds from Tex
as and the southern territories
through Colorado to northern pas
lures has been heavy this spring.
Since the opening of the season
more than twenty herds, averag-
ing $500 each, have crossed the
Arkansas at one point near Lamar,
Prowers county.
G. J. Hysham has lately rented
10000 acres of pasture north of
Cheyenne, Wyoming, and is now
receiving steers from New Mexico
where he purchased several thous-
and head from J.. A. Lockhart.
The cattle are being transported
north.
The stockmen in Wyoming,
Idaho, Montana and the Dakotas
had no sooner discovered and con-
graduated themselves thereon,
that the cattle on the ranges were
in better condition and the losses
less heavy than they had been led
to suppose, than the railroad step
ped in and nipped their expecta-
lions of profitable returns from
their unexpected good fortune.
Col. james A. Lockhart, of
Deming, New Mexico, has brought
1000 head of cattle to Colorado
and is ranging them at various
places on the Bijou and Arkansas.
The Colonel has concluded to
transfer all his live stock interests
to Colorado and will build extern
sive feeding yards at Fowler, Ote-
70 country, where he has bought
the Hartig farms.
Texas has about 7,000,0 900 head
of cattle and sends to market an
nually about as many as any three
states in the Union. While the
other beef making states distrib-
ute their shipments through the
year, the majority Of the Texas
beeves 20 on the market so nearly
together as to overstock the mar.
ket and produce a shrinkage II
values.
AS unpleasant as it was unexpect-
ed, the sharp and sudden decline
in the cattle market must be look.
ed squarely in the face. 1t can
not be lodged and it is useless tc
attempt to palliate it's disappoint.
ing features to the breeders anC
shippers. 1t has been freely com.
monted upon by shippers and I
variety of causes are charged Will
the drop. Among the many ex
: plantations given by the knowing
ones, the principal reason is, "thC
Big Four did it." This is an old
old story. If true, and if the com
bine is really the responsible fac
tor in the cattle decline, its mem
bers are certainly at this particula-
time, in a measure excusable. No
only the great and glorious United
States of America, not only this
continent, butssthe entire world o.
commercial enterprise, is at pres
ent suffering from as severe strin
gency in financial matters as tn,
world has ever experienced. No.
only cattle, but other values OF
every description have declined
and it is only natural that this
shrinkage should effect the price
of beef. But for the tightness Of
the dollar market good, choice
beef would doubtless bring today
from 90 cts. to 81 per 100 lbs. more
than last year. The break in the
market is not attributable, as some
have ale ged, to heavy runs, tc
oyer-supply or to any manipula-
ton, except such as would follow
the monetary panic, as naturally
as does day follow night. Prices
for cattle are low indeed, and viii
remain 80 until times in general