The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1915-10-07
ESTABLISHED 1854.
KILLING SEASON OPENS
AT the New PouItry Plant Of Aaron
& Co., Ia This City, and Employ.
ment Given to Many People.

Things commenced to move down
at the big poultry plant of Aaron 4
Co. in real earnest Tuesday morning,
when the first chickens were killed
at the new plant, and it looks like
old times to see the employees pour
ing out of the doors when the noon
whistle blows. Since locating in
Leon last November, just after Swift
& Co.'s plant was destroyed by fire,
Aaron t& Co. have conducted their
business under most trying circum-
stances. In the first place there was
no desirable building which could be
secured, then the Cesler barn which
was used as a killing station was
burned right in the midst Of the holi-
day poultry season, and they had to
secure other temporary quarters,
moving to the Sigler barn on south
Main street, where they got along as
best they could, waiting for spring to
come to erect permanent building.
AS soon as weather conditions per
mitted the erection of the big new
fire proof building east of the passen-
ger station was commenced, but the
rains, and waiting for material inter-
ferred with the completion OF the
plant. Then after the building was
completed there was a long wait for
pipes for the refrigerating rooms, but
they finally came and were Installed
last week, and Tuesday morning a
big force of pickers were put to work
dressing poultry The men do the
killing and picking in the west room
of the big plant, and they have fine
place in which to work, much better
than in the old Swift plant. Tuesday
morning they had something like
eleven thousand head of live poultry
in the building which would keep
the pickers busy for several days and
big shipments are coming in every
day. The boys in the picking depart
ment went to work with light hearts,
for it has been a long time since
they had any work, many OF them
leaving Leon, but other remained
here securing other employment and
waited for the new plant to be COM
.pleted. A big feeding station has
been installed where the poultry will
be fattened, being in charge Of w.
p. Stewart, an experienced man who
recently came here from OttumWa.
The dressed poultry is stored in the
big cooling rooms, where the temper
ature is kept down almost to the
freezing point by means of pipe re-
frigeration supplied from the plant
Of the Leon Ice Co., which adjoins
the poultry plant, and everything
about the building Is arranged forI
the convenience of the men IN
handling the poultry and eggs. A
large supply of feeding batteries for
the feeding station were unloaded
here Tuesday.
Material has been unloaded for
the new switch track which will ex-
tend from east of the freight house
,up to the new poultry plant, the
switch being 1850 feet in length, and
the railroad company has promised
to send force of graders here at
once to grade the new track, SO that
before long the poultry and eggs will
be loaded direct into cars for ship,
ment.
Manager Manning is installing new
desks and other furniture In the Dig
Office at the plant and Is going to
have everything fixed up in fine shape
in the Office.
The poultry plant means much to
Leon for the weekly pay roll from
now on will amount to a good many
hundred dollars, giving employment
to large number of people, and the
money is spent right here at home
among our home merchants. Aaron
& Co. have invested an immense sum
of money in the new plant and fix
lures and they are permanently locat-
ed as one of the business enterprises
of this city.
IA