El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-10-25
81 40 per hundred for the live animal
to 81 Al for the edible parts.

|
slaue hterers, being compelled to pay
more for beef, charged more for it. In
deed, q represen tative of q large pack
ing house informed me that bis COM
pauy actually lost money on some OF it's
sales, because it did not raise it's
prices fast enough to keep pace with
the rise in the price of stock. The re-
putting up their shop prices for fear
of losing trade; they kept comforting
themselves with the hope that beef
would 5000 go down again. And thus,
two months ago, when the demand
began to be sharp, they were compel
led to put up their prices suddenly, to
the CONSERVATION of the consumer.
In this connection it may be we'll to
observe that most of the retail advance
has been made on the choice cuts of the
beef-the roasts and the steaks-the
food OF the rich man, whereas the per-
centage of increase on the poorer cuts,
the food of the great middle classes, ia
small.
REASONS FOR THE SHORTAGE.
There are several reasons why the
mum Der of cattle has been decreasing.
The first and most important of these is
the failure of millions of acres of graz
ing land in the west, because of its hav-
ing been over-pastured. On some of
the semi-srid ranges the grass has &C
tually been eaten out, roots and all land
the stockmen are compelled to drive
their herds far ntO almost inaccessible
valleys among the mountains. Sheep
have also been crowding the cattle out,
and settlers are coming in and fencing
the ranges.
In seven years the great cattle state
of Texas has suffered a decrease in It's
herd of 2,5OO,O head. or nearly a
ho in "a
United States. Cuba has also lost
heavily, owing largely to the war. In
1895 she had 800, ZOO cattle, and now
she has fewer than $4,000. And the
decrease still continues all over the
country, in spite of higher prices and
greater demands.
All this would seem to indicate at
first glance very unsettled and I'M
satisfactory condition of the cattle in
dustry, but the facts show quite the
contrary. The cattle business has
| never been more prosperous than it is
at this moment-indeed, it's prosperity
10 hardly short of amazing. 1t is just
at the edge of a new era. The day of
the vast range herd is past, and the day
judiciously fattened. has come. 10
reply to q question as to tie conditions
in Wyoming, Senator Frances E. War
rem, of that state, has this to say of the
cattle industry:
"The livestock business in the west
was never on u more substantial basis.
| The industry Ia rapidly passing from
formerly ranged upon the open plains
are being divided into small ones, and
are now owned by many small ranch
men in place Of few large ones. The
cattle are ranged upon the free graz
| highlands Of the plains during summer,
and pastured and fed during winter.
This method of conducting the basi-
! ness eliminates the risk and specula-
tive features which characterized the
earlier history of livestock industry,
| and combined with farming makes it
one of the most substantial and profita-
BILE of the industries of the state
CORN FED CATTLE.
The lonR-horned, wild-eyed, gaunt
Texas steer, so familiar to the mar
kets few years ago, is passing away,
| and HE place is being taken by the
plump, hornless, cornfed animal of IL
| linois, Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska.
This year there will be the largest crop
of corn in the history of the country.
The farmers of the corn states will
raise nearly 2, 600, 900, 600 bushels of it.
600, 900. Corn cannot be shipped the
world over and sold like wheat, and SO
it must be converted into beef. pork,
aud mutton. and here is where the
farmer makes his great profits. 10 the
fall he buys large number of cattle,
brings them to his farm, fsttens
them on his corn, and
sells them few months later at
big advance, and they have left behind
| the fertilizer which will make his
fields produce another big crop. A
single instance will illustrate this bust
ness and its profits. On Septembe Der 20
an Indiana farmer sent seventeen head
of cattle to the Chicago stock yards
market. They had been fattened on
corn, and they averaged 1,5S6 pounds.
There was lively Kidding for them,
they finally sold for $500. hundred
pounds-the highest Septembe price
paid in fifteen years. The average
price per steer was, therefore, $lO9 43,
and they yielded large profit to the
grower. In this way the farmer made
his corn crop highly valuable.
Indeed, so important has the business
of fattening cattle become in the corn
states that the stock raisers actually
buy poor grade cattle in the open stock
yards market at Chicago, ship them
out by rail, feed them we'll for three
months. and brig them back at q con-
siderable profit.
Recently Chicago has been sending
from 1900 to 10000 cattle a week in this
way to the farms. Not only that, but
Illinois and Indiana stock men have
actually been shipping cattle to the
west from MISUNDERSTANDING the cat.
tie 10 the food instead of sending the
food to the cattle. This is q compare
lively new development of the industry.
aud at the present high prices for beef