The San Angelo press. (San Angelo, Tex.) 1897-1907, 1904-01-14
STOCK NEWS.
PREDICTS CALF SHORTAGE.
Secretary of New Mexico Cattle
Recounts Losses Among
Young Stock.

Young StOck.
The trade will not feel encour-
aged to know that so good author
ity as Secretary w. G. Barnes, of
the New Mexico Cattle Raiser's
association, pred cts a short calf
crop next spring in the South
west. lie estimates that the loss
es in yearlings and younger calves
last w ter and spring was fully
1,7OO,,,O head in the Southwest
alone.
Mr.. Barnes view is somewhat
verified by the National Provision
er's report last year and by the
uniformly high price of veal dur
ing the summer and fall 1t was
estimated that the loss all over
the West was 10 per cent of the
calf and yearling crop, That be-
ing so, the available crop of two
vear-olds will be short and higher.
The result will be a sympathetic
reaction in the price Of beef gem
orally before spring.
New Mexico alone lost 100, 900
head of her 100000 head of cat
tie, ranging in age from yearlings
up. The prediction of short
calf crop this year is based by
Mr.. Barnes upon the heavy kill
ing of cows and heifers by pack
ers and butchers. He says in
this respect:
81 have no reports to refer to to
substantiate my figures, but |
think any close observer of the
business done at the great cattle
killing centers have realized that
they have killed fully twice as
much she stock during the past
two years us ever before during
the history of the business. When
you kill the old COWS you chrtail
production. Ergo, no calves .
The remarkably small calf crop
all over the West this year IS an
other cause Personally, | am
satisfied that our calf crop in New
Mexico this year will not average
30 per cent and many cowmen put
it at % per cent. That means, III
New Mexico alone, u shortage OF
something like 10000 calves.
Our calf crop last year was good
one and estimated at from 35O,.
600 to 500, 900 head. Taking it at
the lower figure we are fully $780,
600 head short.
Colorado is even worse off than
we are, for | have had reports
from many Colorado cowmen that
their average will not run much
above 10 per cent. The Panhan'
die is badly off, and, i'll fact, there
is not a good calf crop anywhere
this wear.
Take this shortage of calves
into consideration, then the win
ter losses last year and the kill
ing of COWS and heifers by packers
and butchers, back 1t up by. the
agreed fact that our export trade
is good, that the California trade
has begun to draw It's supple,
from as far east as Colorado, thu
showing big shortage there
which we all know exists, tina
beef was never being eaten il
such quantities as now, and, final
ly that armies and navies will ea
every last one of those old canned
COWS. and whole lot besides, anC
it seems to me as if man is SAT-
on predicting u good strong ris,
in cattle values during the mex
year or two.
"As to hard times cry, cal
look back over twenty-five years
of range cattle work and see wher,
every depression, like, for,instanc'
1893 and 1894, fonnd western cat
tie bringing good, fair prices
/ can offer no reason for this, bu
it is true, in so far az range cat
tie go, at any rate. But anothe
thing: We are not going TO hav'
any hard times. A condition o
prosperity like that we have haC
during the last few years does no
fade away in a day or month
Business is good, crops is almos
at the normal figure, and the onl,
sore place we have is in Wal
Street, and those fellows from re
cent developments, seem to b
mainly engaged in skinning eacj
other, so that we do not hav
much to fear from them. Nation
! al Livestock Reporter.