The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1921-11-04

PROFITS EVERY SEASON
Two Million Pounds of Fresh Pork Sacrificed
Every Winter and Then Bought Back at
Premium of Is Cents Pound to
Railroads and Packers

Takers of the 1920 Federal
Census found 1927 porkers in
Pasquotank County. That prob
ably represents production of
quarter million pounds of
dressed pork AS pointed out in
recent issues of this newspaper
the bulk of this pork is sold on
the Norfolk, Va. dressed pork
market during the months of
December and January when
prices are at their lowest. The
rest of the year Elizabeth City
eats Western pork. We ship
Our own corn fed pork to mar
ket and sell it at the lowest
prices. We then buy back the
finished product from the pack
ing houses Of Richmond, Balti-
more, Kansas City and Chicago
at the highest prices.
We sell a quarter of million pounds
of pork a year at a sacrifice and one
jobbing house in Elizabeth City alone
sells half a million pounds of salt pork,
hams and bacon in a year with freight
rates and packing house profits added,
getting three times for the finished
product what the farmers of this coun-
ty got for the dressed pork in sea-
son. Banks 6 Hughes, wholesale gro
GERS of this city, tell this newspaper
that their sale of salt pork, hams,
shoulders and bacon in the Elizabeth
City territory average around 10000
pounds week. W. ]. Woodley & Co.
handle an average of 5000 pounds of
salt pork a week, say nothing of their
sales of hams and other smoked meats.
D. r. Morgan & Co. sell 1000 to 5000
pounds of salt and smoked meats
week. Other wholesalers in Elizabeth
City, five or six more of them are do
ing as well. And Elizabeth City is
paying a premium Of ten to 15 cents
a pound to the railroads and packing
houses, money that could be Kept at
home. Right here in Elizabeth City
we could handle every pound of the
pork produced in Pasquotank, the 10,-
697 hogs in Camden, the 9,S91 hogs In
Currituck and the surplus from Cho-
wan, Perquimans, TyrreI, Hyde and
Gates as well.
But unless the farmers of Pasquo-
tank, Camden and Currituck listen to
THE INDEPENDENT and pack their
own pork this year. they will sacrifice
it at 6 cents to eight cents a pound
and then buy it back at 25 cents to 35
cents pound, as usual.
A Lack of Experience
In trying to discover why our farm
ers do not make the most of their op-
portunities and pack their own pork,
this newspaper discovers that most of
the farmers in Pasquotank, Camden and
Currituck do not know how to put up
hams and bacon of a quality that will
compete with the cured hams and ba-
con demanded by the local and Virginia
market This newspaper purposes to
now tell the farmers of these counties
how to pack their pork, giving them
the formulas of some of tn most sue
cessful farmers in Perquimans county
this week, to be followed by the Smith
field, Va. formula next week. If nee
essary, the editor of this paper will go
to Smithfield, Va. to get the informa-
tion our farmers should have about the
famous Smithfield ham and how it is
produced.
This week THE INDEPENDENT
has secured the formulas of two of the
most successful packers of country
lams and bacon in Perquimans county.
There is no secret about their methods
Only a few fundamental things are to
,e remembered.
1. Cut the meat out the day it is
killed
2. Salt it the following day as soor
Is the animal heat is out of it.
3. Use salt literally and rub it into
he skin with the hand, keeping the
and moistened while rubbing.
4. Do not let the meat pickle, keep
t spread out on the smokehouse floor
necessary and smoke before it is too
alt.
5. Smoke with a slow smoke, tax
1g three or four days if necessary.
lever let the meat drip while smoking.
it shows signs of dripping, put out
he fire and start smoking again when
ne meat has cooled off.
Concluded on Page 12.)
AREY THAT TMPIH SE AND