322 Report on the American and Canadian Meat Trade. 
meat weight is estimated at 52 to 60 per cent, of the live weight, 
the per-centage varying between these points according to the 
quality, breed, and condition of the animal. For the ordinary 
run of well-fattened, grade, shorthorn cattle, the per-centage of 
dressed meat per 100 lbs. live weight is taken for granted to be 
57, there or thereabout, and it is seldom, if ever, that a beast 
has quality enough to go beyond, or even up to, 60 per cent. 
The following quotations of prices I clip from the ' Prairie 
Farmer,' a highly respectable agricultural paper published at 
Chicago. The quotations are for cattle sold in the Union 
stock-yards : — - 
For the week ending September 2nd, 1876 : — 
Dollars 
per 100 lbs. 
•00 
to 5 
25 
Good to choice native steers 
.. 4 
60 
„ 4 
85 
, 4 
00 
„ 4 
40 
Choice corn-fattened Texans 
.. 3 
75 
„ 4 
00 
75 
„ 3 
65 
.. 2- 
75 
„ 3 
75 
, 2 
75 
» 3 
75 
For the month of November in the same year the receipts of 
cattle at the Union stock-yards, as officially reported by the 
Secretary, George T. Williams, were : — 
Cattle 90,646 
Sheep 33,673 
Hogs 569,195 
These figures, compared with the receipts for the same period 
in the previous year, show an increase of 18,643 cattle ; 
77,802 hogs ; and a decrease of 6994 sheep ; whilst prices were 
as follows : — 
Dollars per 100 lbs. 
Choice graded steers 5 • 00 to 5 1 25 
Good to choice native steers .. .. 4 - 60 4 "90 
Fair to medium steers 4*25 „ 4 " 50 
Common to fair steers 3 * 75 „ 4 ■ 00 
Through Texans 2 '50 „ 3 "60 
Stock steers 2 • 75 „ 3 • 50 
Cows and heifers 2 • 59 „ 3 • 50 
The receipts and shipments of live stock in the present year, 
for the week ending March 3rd, were : — 
Received. Shipped. 
Cattle 28,881 17,998 
Hogs 55,101 15,703 
Sheep 8,246 4,374 
