1870. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



549 



MEAT AND PEOVISIOTT MAHKBTS OF 

 BOSTON. 



Department of Agriculture, 

 * Washington, D. C, Oct. 8, 1870. 



Editors and Pbopbietors New England Far- 

 mer. Boston, Mass. 



Gentlemen : — I desire to collect information con- 

 cerning tlie market system of our principal cities 

 with especial reeard to abuses in the usages of 

 comrcission dealers and other middle-men, and re- 

 spectiuliy ask attention to the foUowing points : 



1. Number of days la the week and hours of the 

 day in which farmers are permitted to sell from 

 their wagons. 



2 Amount of space at the market-houses and 

 on the streets, which they are allowed to occupy. 



3. Price obtained by middle-men or huckMers 

 compared with the rates allowed by them to pro- 

 ducers. 



4. The bearing of prevalent usages of commis- 

 sion-men upon the interests of producers. 



5. Amount of license (if any,) required of far- 

 mers, and other municipal restrictions or require- 

 ments in respect to their sales. 



An article in your paper givirg an account of 

 the characteristic features of the markets of your 

 city, and bearing on the above particu'»ars, would 

 be a valuable contribution to the object which I 

 have in view. Will you have the kindness to con- 

 sider the subject, and in'case you publish such an 

 article, forward to me a marked copy of the paper 

 containing it. Yours very respectlully, 



Horace Capron, Commissioner. 



Remarks — Before proceeding to answer 

 the foregoing questions, it may be well to al- 

 lude briefly to the history of markets in the 

 city. It would seem that, from the earliest 

 times to the present, public opinion has been 

 divided as to the proper course for the au- 

 thorities to pursue in this matter, and as to 

 the eflFect of the various systems which from 

 time to time have been adopted. 



Taking our figures mainly from a report of 

 a joint committee of the Council and Board of 

 Aldermen, on the subject of markets; made in 

 1865, we learn that market places were first 

 ebtablished by the city authorities in 1733, 

 when the population of the town was but 

 15,000, and buildings were erected in three 

 localities. Every day was market day, from 

 sunrite till one o'clock. Forestalling was pro- 

 hibited, and also purchasing marketable ar- 

 ticles elsewhere than at the markets. Public 

 feeling, for some unexplained reason, revolted 

 against this plan, and in 1737 the Centre 

 market was pulled down by a mob, and the 

 town voted to appropriate the other two to 

 different uses. 



In 1740, Peter Faneuil offered to build a 

 market-house in Dock Square, which offer was 

 accepted by a vote of 367 to 360 ; and, in 

 1742, "Faneuil Hall" was erected. 



In 1746, a vote was passed to shut up the 



market-house, and it remained closed till the 

 next spring, when the town went into the 

 market business itself, employing three butch- 

 ers to bring in a supply of meat, and allowing 

 them five per cent, on the sales for their com- 

 pensation. Afterwards the offdl was added to 

 the commissions of the butchers. This plan 

 continued till March, 1749, when £1,000 was 

 voted to the clerk of the market to settle up its 

 accounts, and Faneuil Hall Market was opened 

 again. In 1752, it was again closed, complaints 

 being made of crowded streets and nuisances. 



In March, 1753, it was voted to lease the 

 fetalis in Faneuil Hall Market. In 1757, a 

 committee reported that high prices were 

 caused by too long maiket hours. In 1761, 

 the market-house was destroyed by fire. In 

 1763, forestalling was again complained of, 

 but no action was taken. In 1767, the town 

 was requested to build a fence, and to charge 

 fees for stands inside of it ; and the citizens 

 were requested not to purchase of "disorderly 

 persons" outside. In 1778, a committee re- 

 ported against forestalling, and the inhabitants 

 agreed to make two dinners a week on fi;h, 

 and not to have more than two dishes of meat 

 the same day, and to avoid poultry. A few 

 days afterwards the fishermen were complained 

 of for exorbitant prices. In 1779, regulations 

 were adopted forbidding purchases elsewhere 

 than at fixed localities. 



In 1805 Faneuil Hall was rebuilt and en- 

 larged, covering nearly twice its former area. 

 This with the surrounding streets answered as 

 the market place of Boston, till, under the 

 mayoralty cf Josiah Quincy, Sen., the new 

 building was erected in 1825. Though the 

 legal and proper name of this structure is 

 Faneuil Hall Market, it is often called Quincy 

 Market, in remembrance of the exertions and 

 wise foresight of Mayor Quincy. Up to this 

 time those who occupied street stands paid a 

 fee therefor, and the streets were uncomforta- 

 bly crowded. 



The new building is 535 feet long, and 50 

 wide, with streets on each side, known as North 

 and South Market Streets, 100 feet wide, the 

 whole length of the building. At first the 

 new building furnished more stalls than were 

 required, and those under Faneuil Hall were 

 given up and the space divided and rented by 

 the city, for stores. But the demand for stalls 

 having increased, the lower story of old Fa- 



