THIRTERXTH ANNUAL MEETING. 109 



I saw in Chicago at Armour's slaughter-house. Stalls were 

 arrang-cd about five feet wide, to hold one steer, and about 

 thirty of these stalls w^ere in line beside one of the places of 

 slaughter. One man who walked the plank at the top of these 

 pens did nothing but shoot a bullet into the brain of the animal. 

 As soon as the animal was shot, the door was opened, a rope 

 placed over its head, and by power the animal was drawn into 

 its place for slaughter. The man with the rope did nothing 

 but draw in the animals to their places. One man followed 

 who did nothing but cut their throats ; he was followed by 

 another who did a certain but small part of the skinning, to 

 be followed by another and another, until each had completed 

 his alloted part in dressing the animal. By the time the last 

 one in the line was drawn in, the place of starting was ready 

 for a repetition of the same work. So each man passed down 

 the whole line and did his alloted work, and returned to the place 

 of starting to go over the same routine work. Now each man 

 had only a certain part of the work to do in dressing the animal, 

 but in that part he had become an expert, a specialist. It seemed 

 to me that a dressed carcass was moving away every minute 

 or less. This was cooperative work, trained experts, perfec- 

 tion, system, cost per animal to slaughter reduced to lowest 

 minimum. Xo mistakes, no clashing of work, but simple, well 

 directed and well executed business methods. 



To do work well, rapidly and at the least possible cost, men 

 must not onl}- be thoroughly trained in the work to be done, 

 but the most approved machinery and implements provided. 

 Now a farmer who has an orchard of 50 or 100 or 500 fruit trees 

 cannot readily procure and hold trained and expert workmen to 

 care for his small orchard. He has either to do it all himself, 

 or hire such inexperienced help as comes along, to assist him. 

 In most cases, the cultivating, trimming and spraying is not 

 done at all. for lack of capital, knowledge, or experienced help. 

 Now, suppose a combination was formed of 50 or 100 farmers, 

 with 50,000 or 100,000 trees or more. Intelligent men could 

 be employed and trained, each to have his part to do, and 

 become expert in that particular line of work set for him to do. 

 The man whose business it is to buy for the company could 

 buy everything wanted in the way of tools, teams, fertilizers, 

 spraying machines and materials for spraying, barrels, lum- 



