608 OLEOMAEGAEINB. 



For the year ending December 31, 1899, there were 1,702,572 cattle slaughtered at 

 the Union Stock Yards in Chicago; at $2 per head this would make $3,405,144. For 

 the same period there were 7,032,430 hogs slaughtered at the Union Stock Yards in 

 Chicago ; at 20 cents per head this would make $1,406,486. Therefore, should Congress 

 pass a law which would destroy the oleomargarine business the cattle and hog rais- 

 ers marketing their stock in Chicago would actually lose in the course of a year 

 $4,811,630 by depreciation in value of stock, and this will apply to every other 

 slaughtering point in the United States Kansas City, Omaha, St. Louis, etc. 



Let us analyze this statement. It can be done in two ways. First, 

 let us look at the live-stock interests. Cattle were slaughtered as fol- 

 lows at the leading centers during the past year: 



Chicago.. 1,821,061 



Kansas City 1,032,586 



Omaha 549,089 



St. Louis 506,249 



Total 3,908,985 



It is safe to say that in other centers combined enough more cattle 

 were slaughtered last year to bring the total number up to 5,000,000 

 head. 



During 1899 there were 83,000,000 pounds of oleomargarine manu- 

 factured. Making a liberal allowance, one- third of this product was 

 oleo oil. This is too high an estimate, but we can afford to be liberal. 

 Therefore in 83,000,000 pounds of oleomargarine there was used 

 27,000,01)0 pounds of oleo oil. Eight cents a pound upon the average 

 is about right for the price of oleo oil for the year, as it is not all high 

 grade, nor was the market high all the year. This would make the 

 oleo oil going into the 83,000,000 pounds of oleomargarine worth 

 $2,208,000. This would mean that an average of 44 cents 7 worth of < leo 

 oil was used from each head of cattle killed in the country. Granted, 

 for argument, that this oleo oil could find no other market than to the 

 manufacturers of this country for oleomargarine, except as tallow, which 

 is worth a little over half the price of oleo oil. In that case the 44 cents 7 

 worth of oleo oil would have to be sold at 22 cents as tallow, which 

 would result in the loss of 22 cents a head on a steer worth from $30 to 

 $60 or $70, which is figuring a little finer than people figure in business 

 matters. 



But let us bring to light the facts which Swift & Co. endeavor to 

 hide from Congress. They endeavor to convey the impression that if 

 they are not permitted to imitate butter with the color of their oleo- 

 margarine the entire oleomargarine industry of the world will be 

 wrecked. In no other way can they justify the claim of a loss of $2 

 per head upon cattle. 



But here are the facts. It has been shown that about 27,600,000 

 pounds of oleo oil were used in making oleomargarine in this country 

 last year. This is but a small percentage of the oleo oil produced. 

 The Government statistics of exports for the year 1899 show that com- 

 pared with 27,600,000 pounds of oleo oil used at home there were 

 exported 142,000,00') pounds, largely to Rotterdam, where it is used. 

 They would endeavor to lead Congress to believe that any act affecting 

 the imitation-butter business in the United States would bring about 

 the destruction of the export trade in oleo oil, which trade could, if 

 necessary, also take all the oil used in oleomargarine in this country. 



The same is true of the claim regarding the threatened depression in 

 the price of hogs. 



But let us view this question in another light. According to the 

 stat ment of Swift & Co., the average price of oleomargarine is about 



(*26) 



