St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-10-22

Public Abattoirs and the Meat SUI
Dly

Public Abattoirs and the Meat Sup
The farms of this country have
almost unlimited possibilities for
live stock production. IL the farm
ers can be shown how to produce
live stock at a reasonable profit and
how to get a ready market for it
when it is produced they will fur
nish all the meat that is needed"
This is the conclusion reached in the
recently-published bulletin from
the United States department of ag-
riculture on the meat situation. The
country is in trouble over its meat
supply. The way out must be
through an increase in home pfoduc-
ton.
We, cannot depend on meat inn
ports to make up the growing def
cheney in the immediate future. The
world consumption of meat has al
ready reduced the supply of cattle
in Canada and Argentina, Australia
produces mutton more than beef,
and Mexico as producer of any
thing is doubtful quantity so long
as revolution continues rampant.
The mainstay of an import trade
for the present would necessarily be
Argentina, but that country is be-
ginning to slaughter more cattle
than are born during the year to
supply the demand. In 1912 there
were killed in Argentina 100000
cattle out of total stock of $4,000
900. The departments bulletin
says that England alone could
probably take all of the foreign beef
available for export, and this COM
petition will tend to keep up prices
All tariff duties on beef are now re-
moved, and this is well. No coun-
try that is a large producer of beef
like ours needs to protect its cattle
industry from foreign competition.
What is needed is protection for the
consumer against such a future in
crease of meat prices as may serious
ly impair the diet of our great wage
earning class. The injunction to
eat less meat is good. But there is
point below which the popular
meat diet may not safely go, per-
haps, within so short time.
The American national live stock
association holds the view that the
production of meat animals in this
country could be increased from SO
to 100 per cent without taxing our
resources in the slightest" The de-
partment> Of agriculture holds that
view even more strongly in saying
that our possibilities of meat produc-
ton are almost limitless. The prob
lem of Increasing the supply and
thus keeping meat prices down to
reasonable figures can be solved,
however, only by a revolution in our
methods. And that this revolution
is overdue appears in the rapidity
with which the country's meat ami
mails are declining in number. At
the beginning of the present year
these animals in the United States
numbered but 36,050,000, as against
81 $4,000 on January 1, 1907
Meanwhile, dairy COWS have remain
ed stationary. Of course, popula-
ton has increased Our beef has al
ways had superior quality, conapar-
ed with Argentine beef, because the
animals were corn-fed- The corn
crop a year. ago was so large that
hopes were aroused that cheaper
feeding would bring cheaper meat.
But already the tremendous di-
minution in the number of cattle
was in progress, and cit was clear
a succession of big corn crops was
necessary to change the situation
materially. Instead Of another
bumper corn crop this year we have
one severely shrunkenf by the
summer drouth.
The small farmer, east as well as
west, is the hope of the country
in maintaining the nations meat
supply, according to the department
of agriculture. And the packing
house monopoly of slaughtering and
facilities must be des-
troyed to give the SMALL farmer his
chance, to make cattle raising for
market profitable once more. The
public abattoir, throughout the east
at least, has become a crying need.
On this point the departments bulle-
tin seems to take advanced ground:
and-"An important reason why
farmers produce less meat than for
merly is to be found in the system of |
from producer to con-
sumner that has grown up in this
country In most of the countries of |
Europe public abattoirs have been |
to which farmers may !
consign their fat stock, the meat
from which is then sold to the con-
sumner without passing through the
hands Of an interminable line of /
each of whom takes his
toll. e'
In this country the farmer receiv-
es only small fraction of the price
paid by the consumer. Enormous
packing establishments have monop-1
olized the business and there is little I
or no competitions in buying the |
farmers stock. The enormous for
tunes that have grown up in this I
business in recent years show that |
the farmer has not been getting his
full share of the profits. a'
; Again the retail meat business at /
present conducted in cities renders |
profits necessary. Nu-
merous small groceries, each with |
It's Independent delivery system,
clerks and fixtures, serve a few pat
IONS scattered over considerably
overlapping areas. Better organiza-
ton of the retail business whereby
It shall be conducted in larger units
with well systematized methods of
delivery is seriously needed. Such
could greatly lessen