CATTLE AND DAIRY FARMING. 11 



conflict with the cattle and cattle products of the United States in for- 

 eign markets, the following may be cited : 



(1) The purposes for which the cattle are bred and reared whether 

 for the dairy or the butcher. 



(2) The quality of the cattle 1 . 



(3) The home consumption of meat and dairy products. 



Spain, Portugal, and Italy are light consumers of these products; 

 hence, with their very low stock rate, their ability to export cattle. 



Switzerland, France, Holland, and Belgium are dairy countries ; that 

 is, the dairy is the principal interest and the butcher but an incident. 



Austria and Hungary have fair cattle supplies, but their export is 

 very limited. This, however, is due principally to the stringent cattle 

 laws of Germany laws enacted for the protection of German cattle 

 from the introduction of disease. 



The exporting cattle countries of Europe are Denmark, Portugal, 

 Spain, Germany, Holland, Sweden, and Russia. From the arbitrary 

 conditions which surround the industry 'in these countries, and in view 

 of the unlimited fields for its development outside of Europe, it does 

 not appear as if the future held out much promise for cattle-breeding, 

 for export at least, in the Old World. 



The United Kingdom being the only country in Europe which imports 

 cattle and fresh beef from countries outside of Europe, such imports 

 may be regarded as those which Europe cannot supply. The interna- 

 tional imports and exports between France, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, 

 Holland, Austria-Hungary, and Eussia are sufficient unto themselves, 

 with a small surplus for export to England. This surplus was as fol- 

 lows in 1884 : 



Cattle. From Germany, 24,492 head ; from Holland, 3,664 head. 



Fresh beef. From Eussia, 3,551,184 pounds ; from Germany, 711,648 

 pounds ; from France, 104,272 pounds. 



This, it will be seen, is a very small surplus lor so large a portion of 

 the Continent, and a population of about 250,000,000. 



The other countries of Europe, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Spain, 

 and Portugal, export about 140,000 head of cattle annually. It is to 

 these that Great Britain looks, outside of Ireland, for any regular sup- 

 ply of European cattle. 



The total annual wants of the United Kingdom, based upon the as- 

 sumption that its importations cover its wants, may be estimated at 

 480,000 head of foreign cattle, or their equivalent In fresh beef. This 

 estimate is based on the following calculations : In 1884 the importations 

 were 61,314 cows, 309,696 oxen, 98,375,200 pounds of fresh beef, and 

 54,911 calves. 



The value of the fresh beef, as may be seen on reference to the sta- 

 tistical table heretofore given, is a little over one-third the value of the 

 oxen, and it is therefore assumed that the 98,375,200 pounds of fresh 

 beef represented one- third the number of oxen imported. The greater 

 number of the oxen and nearly all the beef being American, gives addi- 

 tional assurance that this estimate is a very close approximation to the 

 real figures. The value of five calves equaling the value of one ox, this 

 import is equivalent to 5,000 oxen. 



The total number of horned cattle, or their equivalent as above, im- 

 ported into the United Kingdom from European countries during tho 

 year 1884 amounted to -about 180,000 head, leaving 300,000 head to be 

 supplied by countries outside of Europe. These were drawn from the 

 following countries, fresh beef being converted into cattle as before: 

 From the United States, 234,700 head; from Canada, 64,031 head; from 

 all other places, 1,269 head. 



