The Jennings daily record., 1902-12-26

piled with its daily vic
tuals and drink is famil-
4 y lar in q general way to
most people. The census
- - ~ tells with at least an at.
tempt nt exactness how much of
that an average American eats
and drinks. 1t Is also an interest
ing problem, knowing how much a city
like this consumes to consider how far
1t has provided for anything beyond it's
immediate needs. How does Its store
of food compare with the well-stocke1
larder Of q provident housewife? How
long would breakfasts and luncheons
and dinners go. in their present abund-
ance and variety, il II hostile fleet held
the Hudson, the Sound. and had cut
the bridges across the Harlem; or (a
more probable contingency II hurri-
cane. a blizzard, or an earthquake ef-
fectually cut the lines Of transportation
in two and no one could mend them?
The resources OF country or Of n
city are apt to be underestimated in
considering Il question like this. Peo-
pie do not realize until they have tried
1t how far Il little can be made to go on
half-ration or quarter-ration basis
The Germans calculated in 1870 that
Paris was able to stand a two months
siege. In fact. the city held out for
143 days.
Very possibly, ;s many schools of
dietary experts contend, people would
be better off If they did not eat SO
much. Nevertheless. in the hasty sur
vey which follows it has been assumed
that people will keep pretty closely to
their usual habits Of eating and drink
ing. even in time of severe shortage,
and that they will not pause in this
probably misguided course until the
warehouses, which are the city's pan.
tries, are empty.
SUPPLIES FROM TIE WEST.
If the trains from the West should
stop coming In for three days the retail
butchers would cease to get their nor
nal supply of fresh meat; II the inter-
ruption of traffic continued for a week
they would receive practically none at
all. Now and again the city gets to the
very verge of this latter condition.
Dealers said that in the great snow
storm of 1900 only day or two sep
arated the city from an actual meat
famine. But the trains came through
passed.
The Western packing houses. which
supply the greater part of the meat
eaten here. figure on keeping about
enough meat "in sight to supply one
weeks demand. Generally speaking.
there is one days supply in the ''cool-
er," ready for immediate delivery. An
other days meat is in the cars at the
yards. This means, Of course. at Ho.
boken or Jersey City. in many cases.
and, strictly speaking, not in New
York at all. While these cars are
being unloaded trains aggreyating n
third days supply are coming in. The
allowance FOR two days moro is OH the
road somewhere betwe cen here and Chi
cago, Kansas City or ST. Louis, and ut
the packing houses i'll the West sixth
days meat Is being loaded OH the cars.
Perhaps tenth of the city's meat
supply. the greater part of it killed
kosher" for the use of the orthodox
Jews, comes from the city abattoirs
which face on the East River. They
could keep up their normal output
such as it is for q day or two after the
Western meat had given out. The six
days supply which they have lin
sight is made up substantially as fol-
lows: One day OIL the ''hoolss." ready 10
be carted away to the retail shops, one
day in the killing pen. one days supply
OF live cattle being unloaded in the
yards. one days supply Of live cattle
on the train coming East. and one
days supply in the Western stock
yards. bought and ready for shipment.
DAYS SHIPMENT OF CATTLE,
Exactly what day supply amounts
to is Il question more difficult to an
swer than the published statistics
would seem to indicate. Figures show
ing domestic receipts and exports to
foreign countries are made up, but
these take no account of numerous
small shipments. especially Of pork,
made from points near by, or for the
trade of places i'll this vicinity which
are supplied from the New York mar
kets. One expert of high authority has
computed that the people of the greater
city and its suburbs eat about 100000
600 pounds Of meat every week Rough
ly speaking, an average days supply
is about 100000 pounds. a days
supply of pork is more nearly 2,OOO, 900
pounds. Mutton and lamb are not eat
en- to such an extent, but the demand
for these two meats will reach 25O.OOO
pounds day.
If the packing houses cold storage
rooms and butcher shops were ran
sacked, therefore. the amount on hand
1t an nYcrage time would he soma.