The Kosciusko star. (Kosciusko, Miss.) 18??-1898, 1895-04-19
THE ADVANCE IN BEEF
Statistics Of the Agricul-
tural Department Show
A Marked Decrease i'm the Num-
ber of Cattle.
There Has Also Been q Falling
ORin the Value.

Washington, April 10 Or. Sal
mon, chief Of the bureau Of animal
industry, is preparing instructions
to agents in accordance with Sec
retary Morton's directions to in
vestigate the cause OF the high
price Of beef products ana what in
lucnce the trust has On the price
The inquiry will be carried On at
Chicago, st. Louis, Kansas City,
Nebraska City, Omaha, Sioux City,
Hammond, Ind, and other points
where the bureau has a force Of
experts.
DR.. Salmon has heretofore made
an inquiry in this direction and
lis report on "conditions given III
the Price Gazette" he gives some
views applicable to the present in
quiry. lie says:
THE estimated number Of ami
mails from which the beef supply
is drawn gives but little idea as to
whether this supply has Increased
more rapidly than the demand, or
whether, on the other hand, it has
diminished. Our rapidly increas-
inc population and our huctuating
export trade must be constantly
borne in mind, if we wish to hold
clear views on this important sub
iect. At the first Approximately
accurate census Of cattle in 1886
there were 7G7 cattle to the l00l
population. This number increas-
ed in 1860 to SIS, showing large
stock OF cattle on hand at thai
time. In 1870, partly from the
effect of the war and partly from
an underestimate Of the number o
cattle in the country by the census
we Gud the number of cattle re
duced to 61S per thousand popula
ton. Ten years later the numbe
per thousand increased to the ex
tent of 12O and reached 73S. II
1881 there is an increase Of 6 pc
thousand; from 1881 to 1882 th'
incle ease is IA per thousand; from
1889 to 1888 is Is per thousand
being the largest apparent increas'
in any one year; from 1883 to lSS-
the increase is IA per 1000; from
1884 to 1885 it is 13 per 1000
reaching the highest point sine
1860, or 800 cattle per 1000 popu
lation. From 1885 to 1889 ther'
was a steady falling off in cattle
there being 75S to every 1000 pop
ulation in 1899. In considerin!
the proportion Of cattle to popula
ton and drawing conclusions as t.
relative beef supply in differen
years, the facts should not be oTer
looked that there has been a grea
change within the last twent.
years in the character of steer
that have been sent to market
New ard better blood has beel
infused into the old stock and tn
result that steers are markete
young, weigh more and yield
larger proportion of carcass thai
formerly. The beef supply OF
tanned from Il given number Of cat
tie is for this reason considerable
larger than it was few years ago
The increased number Of cattle pc
thousand Of people does not there
fore represent the whole increas
in the beef supply which has talk
en- place since 1870 There is il
addition, an increase resultin
from early maturity, size an,
quality, which can only be estima
ted with great difficulty and un
certainty.
1T has been evident, from th
. receipts of cattle at the leadin
stock yards Of the country, that
very large number of sucn animal
have been marketed in proportion
to the stock on hand, and this ha
been one of the leading factor
which operated to decrease tn
: plice of steers. At the decline j
.hA nrices the nrnfits in cattle