Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-10-25
ENORMOUS MEAT INTERESTS
How the Packing Combine Con ducts Its Vast
Enterprises


tlce Is preserved and devoted to some
useful purpose. Each Of the GOO differ
ent articles is made according to formu-
las. essentially different IN specific par.
ticulars, and orders for every one OF
ITEM require special aud distinct pre-
parations,
Armour & Co, have between $500 and
1000 employees connected with the aa-
rlnistratiye and commercial depart.
ments, from managers to messenger
boys, and between 5000 and 10000 per
sons engaged in manual labor at thoil
several plants The payroll amounts
to about Sl6O00,00O a year. These en-.
plnyes are scattered among more than
COO branch houses IN different parts Of
the United States and foreign coun-
;rcs There is not a city OF any size
IN the world al which the company Il
not represented. They own 5000 r.
IN gerator cars for the transportation
OF meats. chickens. eggs, fruit and
packlng-house products Their diffe'-
ent plants In the west and southwest
are connected by about 5000 miles of
private telegraph wire. and from 50 t.
10 telegraph operators are employed,
according to the'season
In addition to the business have d -
acrlbed Armour 4 co. operate al Tie
elevators on the ST. Paul and Burllng
ton railway In Chicago. with capa-
city Of more than 5000, OO0 bushels Of
grain This branch ot fac business was
established and DEVELOPED by the late
Philip ID. Armour and was one IN which
he was deeply interested
ba nppcoyt had nf tho lnncn L. I
Ogden Armour, and when | asked his
why beef was so high this year he said
that IL was due to several reasons
first, the scarcity of cattle: second, to
the demand Of the working people for a
better quality Of meat than they have
been In the habit OF using. This is
due TO the prosperity OF the masses"
said Mr.. Armour. During the hard
times the mechanics and laboring class
Of the population got along with as lit
tie meat as possible and bought only
the cheaper cuts, but since they have
been earning good wages and have had
plenty Of work they are buying sirloin
and porterhOuse steaks and the more
expensive cuts But the chief reason
for high prices Is that the supply Of
live stock has not increased In proper
ton with the population.
There is always a variation In the
cattle supply one year stock will be
plenty and the next IL will be scarce
and prices vary according 10 the sup
ply. During the years when high
prices prevail many new people so into
the business Of raising cattle, and those
who are already engaged in II increase
the size Of their herds. Then, when
the additional supply Is thrown on the
market, prices go down, and the next
year or two will be followed by a scar
city and higher prices, and so the pen
dulum swings forward and back. Then
again. when the pastures are poor or
the corn crop Is small from drought on
any other reason, farmers and ranch
men sell off their stock, which Of
course, brings down values. Last year
we had failure Of the corn crop and
hogs and cattle were comparatively
low. This year corn is worth 60 cents
a bushel. and therefore prices are very
high. lIeXt year we win probably
have a lower range OF values and the
year following they will be still lower
In 1852 We had the highest prices ever
known TO the trade and in 1898 the low
est. When prices We're high everybody
went into the business, and when they
were low farmers and ranchmen quit
raising cattle and went TO raising
horses,
Packers would always rather handle
low priced than high priced beef" con-
tnued Mr.. Armour, because more Of (;
is sold and there is a larger percentage
OF profit, Prosperity in the fresh
meat business depends upon low or al
least moderate prices, and the packing
industry Is today actually dependent
upon by-products for its dividends.
This is simply because nothing goes
10 waste, We are constantly bringing
out new things and bringing down the
business to the closest detail It is on
ly by handling enormous quantities,
with great economy, and system, that
money can be made in the meat bust
ness and that Is the reason why so few
people go into the business.
Cattle only yield on the average
from 30 to 60 per cent OF dressed beef.
and II Is necessary for us TO utiliZN
every particle OF the remainder of the
carcass IN order 10 cover the interest
upon the money invested to pay for the
labor, the transportation and material
used and leave a profit. In the old
days when each butcher Killed HIS own
beef nearly half Of II went to waste.
and yet he made a profit Of not less
than % per cent and usually 80 per
cent Nowadays, with the business or
ranized and systematized TO the very
highest degree, our profits are seldom
more than two per cent after utilizing
every atom Of the animal slaughtered.
II we did not handle an enormous vol
ume OF products We could not do any
business az all Two per cent upon
q total Of s2000OO 600 seems to be very
small profit and II can only be OBJ
tanned by the most careful economy.
II II very different from a profit OF 80
per cent upon business Of 1900 or
5000"
what has become OF the difference
between the - per cent profit that was
derived by the butcher in old times and
the pc recent reported by the packing
house Industry today?"
The greater part OF II goes 10 the