Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1900-06-16
the CATTLE HORN TRADE.
Where the Supply Comes From and the Macy
Uses to Which They Are Put


In Frankfort street. near the East
River and its picturesque shipping. Is
u small shop that deals In curious
commodity-horns. Not the musical
horns which the little German band
delights to play. but the horns with
which bull assists q stranger over
fence or losses a small boy over n
treetop. Cattle are raised not only for
the steaks which they carry about
with them. but also for their hoofs.
which finally trot to the factory and
become glue: their bones. which are
laid down in the mill to become agri.
cultural fertilizers: their hides. which
are turned into shoes. and their horns.
whieh arc made by the art of the jew.
eler, and the skin of the craftsman
INTO n hundred objects of beauty and
dtility.
The farmer boy. driving Spot and
Erindlc, may imagine them Christmas
beef, but he is little likely to think
Spots hoofs as FASTING together parch.
mcnt deeds or restoring the delicate
form of q shattered vase. or to picture
Brindle's horns or any part thereof In
u jewelers. window as an object of
art.
Before the consumer finally sits
down at the table to eat old Brindlc
turned into roast beef he may comb
his hair with a horn comb. Then he
may eat consommc out of horn
spoon and serve the salad with horn
salad knife and fork. and finally but
ton the horn buttons of his coat over
the beef soup and roast beef.
The horns which the cattle In the
field shake at you. proudly or de-
family. are an object of the worlds
commerce. Sometimes n ship from
the other side of the world comes in
to New York Harbor with G0.OOO or
10000 pairs of cattle horns in her
hold.
In the little shop you see horns point
Ing toward you from every direction:
horns on the wall. thick as thorns on
n blackberry bush: horns rs large
around as an elephants tusks. which
look as II they might have been carried
by mammoth: long. pointed horns,
rs black as Satan's, that once grew
straight up from a steers head like
the horns Of an antelope; horns pol
ishcd like ivory and notified like mar
bic. Above the proprictor's desk
arches an incredible pair Of horns,
nine feet long from tip to tip. The
stec. that once wore those roamcd
the pampas Of the Argentine Rcpub.
lie. They are believed to be the lar
gest cattle horns in New York, and
perhaps. In the country.
"lIorns are shipped to the United
States from South America, Australia
Africa. India and Europe" says the
keeper of the shop. "a great many
come from Bucnos Ayres and Monte
vldco. the commercial centres OF the
great cattle industry Of the Argentine
Republic and Uruguay. London, nj
so, sends argosles of horns to thu
New World. collected largely from
Russia and the Orient. India exports
buffalo horns. The domestic suppl,
Of horns comes chiefly from Texas
Montana. Idaho. Colorado ana Kansas
IAN the large horns which you So,
In the office came from South Amer
ica. l don't think 1t would be possible
now to get pair OF horns rs long al
the longest pair here. The wild cattl,
have been crossed by superior breeds
and their horns no longer grow a,
large ana long rs they did years ago
In a measure they are graded, and n
the stock improves In quality thu
horns diminish In size. This Is espe
cially true of the herds Of cattle II
Texas and the Far West. There ar'
hardly any pure wild cattle left In TIN
country.
"Twenty-hve years ago one nigh
see Americans In the West who's,
boards reached their waists. Tina
was the day Of the long.horned cattle
"The price Of horns depends upOI
their quality. The best cattle horn
bring $500 a ton. the poorest may b
had ut $40 n ton. while $500 or $3.50
ton frequently Is paid. Owing to tn
decrease In the number of cattle, espe
cially the wild ones, horns have RISE
% per cent. In price In the last tw
years. despite the competition o
eelluloid.
"The finest horns In the Unite
States for manufacturing purpose
were the American buffalo horns. TIL
bisons. unfortunately. are PRACTICAL
extinct, and their horns have disal
peared from the market for all time
Sheep and goat horns do not comman
as high a price rs cattle horns. w
. often receive horns In lots Of 5000
or GO,00O pairs. We sometimes SCI
10000 pairs to one custOmer."-Nc,