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Provision Trade with England. 



Vol. VIII. 



Provision Trade Avith England. 



Since the adoption of the new Tariff by the British 

 Government, the trade in provisions has become one 

 of great importance to this country, and promises to 

 be still more so. Many errors have been run into, 

 and losses consequently sustained, in the mode of pre- 

 paring and packing beef, pork, &c. Much imposition 

 too, has been practised in the introduction of inferior 

 articles, and passing them off for American; thus cast- 

 ing discredit and suspicion upon the genuine article, 

 and operating seriously to the prejudice of our trade. 

 Both time and care will be requisite to overcome it, 

 by the establishment of a high character for our arti- 

 cles of this kind. A circular from a respectable Ame- 

 rican house in Liverpool, dated August, of this year, 

 has been handed us, from which the following extracts 

 are made. We may remark in passing, that at the 

 end of the paragraph below, on pork, the writer recom- 

 mends the use of salt-petre. The experience of the 

 editor is decidedly against the use of salt-petre on 

 pork that is to be kept through the ensuing summer. 

 It is apt to prevent its taking a sufficiency of salt. 

 There is no danger of putting too much salt on pork: 

 plenty of this, with pure pickle, will ensure the fine 

 red tinge alluded to. — Ed* 



As the season is now approaching' for the 

 commencement of your fall and winter ope 

 rations, in the way of curing and packing 

 provisions, we afe desirous of laying before 

 you the following instructions relative there- 

 to, feeling that they are important to all 

 who contemplate a trade with this country. 

 Judging from the operations in this and the 

 London market, for the year now about 

 closing, it is evident that there is a large 

 opening here for your surplus produce, when 

 put up to correspond with similar produc- 

 tions of our own. That American provis 

 ions are in much favour here, cannot be de- 

 nied. In beef, the superiority of the first 

 quality over what is generally packed in 

 this country, is admitted, and it only seems 

 necessary to give proper attention to the 

 curing and packing to insure a large and 

 profitable market. With these few pre- 

 liminary remarks, we will now proceed to 

 give such hints on each article, as will, in 

 our opinion, be highly conducive to your in- 

 terests, if followed up. 



Beef. — Immediately on the adoption of 

 the present tariff, we had a considerable in- 

 flux of all sorts of this article from your 

 side, a large majority of which was totally 

 unsuitable, both in quality and packing, as 

 doubtless many have experienced from their 

 account of sales. A small proportion proved 

 fine meat, but badly packed or messed, and 

 a still smaller part only seemed to be what 

 was wanting in quality and packing. Du- 

 ring the present year our receipts have been 

 much more extensive, and we are happy to 

 say, that where the instructions of ourselves 



and others have been attended to, an article 

 precisely suited has been received, and the 

 result in point of price, has been highly re- 

 munerative to the shipper. Our own sales 

 of Mess and Extra Mess, fully bear us out 

 in this remark, for we have reason to believe 

 that in several instances they have paid, in- 

 cluding exchange, from 10 to 20 per cent, 

 profit, and this after being put up in the city 

 of New York. What then would have been 

 the result if it had been packed in Ohio or 

 Illinois, where the meat would probably have 

 cost only half the price 1 



Instructions for packing. — Fine fat heifer 

 or young steer beef, is much liked. Bullock 

 or ox beef, from 7 to 10 cwt., where the 

 flesh has been put on the carcass in a short 

 period, thus causing it to be tender, is in 

 high favour. Tierces have a decided pre- 

 ference over barrels, and should contain 38 

 pieces of as near 8 lbs. each, as possible, 

 making 304 lbs., but to insure this weight, 

 308 to 310 lbs. should be packed up, as there 

 is always a decrease in the first three or four 

 months. The tierces should be full bound, 

 with one iron hoop at either bilge, and also 

 one at either chime, with strong ash or hick- 

 ory between, as also one at the chimes, par- 

 tially to cover the iron hoop there. Ash 

 staves are preferred, as not giving a brown 

 colour to the meat. Walnut staves should 

 certainly be avoided. A tierce of No. 1, 

 prime, may be composed of 8 lb. pieces of 

 Brisket, Flat Rib, Naval, Shoulder and Stick- 

 ing pieces. Mess should be the same, omit- 

 ting the Shoulder and Sticking pieces. Ex- 

 tra Mess, or India, should be of 8 lb. pieces 

 of Briskets, Flat Rib, Standing Rib, a piece 

 or two of the Rump, with suet taken out, 

 and a fine fat Round in the centre of each 

 tierce. An inferior description to these 

 three qualities may be made, and called 

 cargo; say to consist of Shanks, Necks, 

 Sticking pieces. Shoulders, with a few 

 pieces of Brisket, Flat Rib and Navals, to 

 redeem it. We do not, however, recom- 

 mend this low quality. 



If barrels be used instead of tierces, which 

 should not be the case, the assortment in 

 each should be the same, and the weight be 

 fully 200 lbs., to insure which 203 or 204 

 lbs. should be packed up. Barrels will do 

 with one iron hoop at each chime, with a 

 wood one nearly to cover it, and eight or 

 ten good ash hoops under. The manner of 

 cutting up beef is very imponant, that every 

 piece may be fair and square, and be at once 

 known when tlie eye rests on it. The 

 cleaver should be entirely excluded in this 

 operation, and nothing but the saw and knife 

 used, that every piece may be quite smooth. 

 We deem this very important, and cannot 



