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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 22, 1903)
Handling Cattle at Big Markets Pictures from Photos by a Staff Artist at South Omaha ' i k " 1 il ry ' i i I ! i " . . 1 . - ; ... 7 j - - . ji; t - I t -. Hv.-r-rf r j f . .: '1- - "TK T ' "' ' " ' v ' " ' 'l ' ' . " t IN KARLY MORNLNQ SCENE AT THE SOUTH OMAHA STOCK YARD SI a v u a,wv,vw mmu nciv dviu nat i 1 I year at the six principal market point in the united States. This Includes Chicago, Kansas City, Omaha, St. Louis, St. Joseph and ' Sioux City. A large proportion of these cattle were slaughtered and consumed to this country, while others were shipped broad cither alive or as dressed beef. A ' good many of the cattle offered are, of course, unfit for beef and are purchased by farmers, fattened and returned to market. Few people realise the magnitude of the cattle business nor the organisation re quired for the disposition of these 8,000,000 ' cattlo yearly. A person who watches the constant stream of cattle pouring Into any ' of the live stock centers cannot help, how ever, but marvel at the way the big packers buy them, dispose of them and make way for the next day's receipts. No matter how heavy the supply may be nor the prospects for the future, the packers keep buying, buying, buying, until It seems as though there could be no fu ther outlet for the thousands to come. t Of course, prices : luctuate back and forth, according to tht law of supply and demand, but the chances from day to day are comparatively slight, seldom being more than a dime or 15 cents per hundred rouiMls. "Were it not for the perfection of the preent organisation for carrying on the beef trade the fluctuations of price wouid be something terrlb'.e from the ship pers' standpoint.' Sup pose tho capacity of the packing plants at any one market was limited to about the average day's receipts and that there was no demand for mora than a certain num ber, what would be come of the shippers who had stock on sal whea the receipts wer excenslveT The market would be simply de moralised, the cattle could not be sold and prices might fluctuate M cents or even $1 per hundred from' day to day. As It is, how ever, the packers ap pairotly have an out let for everything In sight. If the receipts exceed expectations prices may break a dime or so, but stili - the cattle are bought slaughtered and a market found for them. Looking at It ( I from this standpoint the packers are cer tainly deserving of some credit, no matter what their faults may be, for If It wer not for them and the perfect way lu which they hav organised itieir buatueaa iue utiiU growers would have no stable markot and could never estimate the pile the stock would bring when ready for market. The reason why packers have such an outlet for their product Is found In the fact that they have representatives all over the world. A poor demand In one section is offset by a brisk demand from another, so they are not dependent upon the conditions exist ing Ia toy on locality and a few thousand cattle, more or less, affects them but little. Ia tUaes of general financial depression the 7 r J i. ! . . .- . V, - . . I - ' , 4 ' OOINO DOWN INTO THE PENS FROM TUB STOCK CARS. OLD-FASHIONED LO NO HORNED STEER." beef trade, of course, suffers the same as all, other Industries, and In fact when peo ple, begin to feel the effects of hard times . they can reduce their consumption of meat about as quickly as anything else and a lump In the price of beef follows. -,' i - During the fall months the receipts of cattlo ' at the principal market points are the largest of the year. It la at that time that western ranchmen dispose of the cattle they hav grown on the western ranges. Not very many years ago the cattle from the western states were considered a pretty scrubby lot Most of them wer long horned, big boned animals with but little flesh on them, and in reality seemed to be little but skin, bones, horn and hoof. They were wild as tigers and about as dangerous to a man on foot. The cattle, however, that ar cetnlng from the western ranges today are a 'far different lot Ranch own ers have bred up their stock until the old fashioned, long horned steer is getting com paratively scare except as he Is Imported from Texas, and even In that state the cattle are much better bred than they wer a short time ago. The majority of farm ers In the corn belt now prefer to buy the western cattle for feeding purposes, as they do better than the natives. Not only are the western cattle better bred, but they are better cared for. Most ranchmen now make some preparations for 'L. .' " fii ' S. :: Kv r - ;y f f.,'.',r J "'" - j i ' , J FTLLINO UP BEFORE WEIGHING, feeding their cattle hay during the sever storms In winter. That reduces the loss and puts the cattle In much better condi tion for the spring, which, of course, makes them better when they arrive at the mar kU lu tLi fiU. It U alss sotlctU thst they ar not nearly so wild a formerly, which makes them still mor valuable when old for feeders. One of the most Interesting features of the western cattle trade Is the way In which the ranchmen brand their cattle. Every ranch owner has one or mor brands. No two brands are alike, and consequently when the brand Is burned Into the flesh of the calf his owner is able to Identify him at any time. These brands ar recorded the same as deed or mortgage la recorded. and the public has access to the records. In the states of Montana, Colorado, South Dakota and Nebraska the brands ar re corded at the state capltols, while in Wyoming the records are kept at the dif ferent ccunty court sou. Fvery cattlo man knows not only his own brands, but all the mor Important ones in his section of the country. Where the cattle are run ning on the rang at larga many of them . will, of course, stray away and mix In with other brands of cattle. These ar known as es trays. Were it not for the brands the rightful owners would never se these cat , tie again, and thieves could operate un molested. At the liv stock markets the estrays al ways cause aa Immense amount of trouble- for the reason that the money Is not paid to the man who ships them In, but to th original owners. The legislatures of Colo rado and Montana appropriate a sum of money each session to defray the expenses of maintaining brand inspectors at the dif ferent market points. - In South Dakota and Nebraska no appropriations are made, and : consequently the ' cattle men hav formed live stock growers' associations and the expense of brand inspectors is divided among the different members. In Wyom ing the Btate defrays part' of the expense and the state association stands the rest About , the same results are reached by these different methods, except that where the state stands the expense .all the cattle men receive protection, where In states Ilk Nebraska only, members, of the state as sociations receive protection. i At South Omaha C. L. Talbot has charg of the Inspection arid represents the Wyom ing:, South' Dakota and' Nebraska associa tions, and also the 'state ' of Wyoming. He Is assisted by -M. H." Beetham, George Carley and Joe Flood. ' The state of Colo rado is ' represented' by W. ' B. Home and Montana by ' R. H. Rickard. These men for years have' made a business of th study of brands and as a result they know all the mora Important ones and many cf the less Important These men Inspect very bunch of . cattle shipped from th abovo named states and the shippers ar obliged .to show, proper ownership befor the cattle can be disposed of. - . Every market day - the Inspectors are in the saddle at daylight and not an animal Im old or weighed until they have satisfied themselves that h has not been stolen or strayed away from his rightful owner. They - have books showing every re corded brand, th owner and his ad dress. When they rid Into a pen of cattla they look at th brand on every steer. If there ar no estrays among them and if the railroad billing shows that lhey were . shipped from their proper sta tion and by their right ful owners they ar passed. If, however, there are any cattl among them of differ ent brands they must be weighed separately and the Inspector In structs the commission . man having the cat tl In charge what he shall do with the pro ceeds. The inspector has the authority to have the money turned over either to the rightful owner or the secretary of th stato association in which tho owner lives. In this way ranchmen ar saved thousands of dollars every year. It should not be Imagined that It is con sidered an attempt at dishonesty for a ranchman to ship In cattle that do not be long to him, for that is th easiest way to settls it, as the Inspectors se to It that the rightful owner gets the proceeds. Many times a ranchman wl!l ship in a carload of cattle and not own a single steer In the bunch. The freight then has to b) (Continued on Pag 8UtnJ , j