American Cattle MarJcets and the Dressed Beef Trade. 149 
generally comes away convinced tliat American ingenuity in this 
respect " beats creation." 
American cattle markets differ from those in Great Britain, 
apart from their size, in two important points — namely, the cattle 
are sold by weight here, and the majority of the raw product is 
turned into beef, &c., by the dressed beef concerns. On the first 
point, the writer sees no reason for doubt that it is far in advance 
of the system practised in the older country. Opinions differ, 
however, very widely on the second proposition. The pivot upon 
which our great central markets swing at present is dressed 
beef. Not only is this the case in Chicago, Kansas City, and 
Omaha, but there are big concerns in New York devoting 
their attention to this business, while Boston and other points 
are following suit. The magnitude of the business, the rapid 
developments made, the amount of money employed, show that 
it has been successful so far as those connected with it are con- 
cerned. 
The " Big Four," as the American press loves to call them, 
have got a hand on the cattle business that to the outsider 
seems full of danger. Popular opinion is against them, and 
their business has grown to giant proportions amid tremendous 
opposition — an opposition which is developing every day. Unfor- 
tunately for this opposition it springs from the retail butchers 
who have lost their trade. For the present at least, the squabble 
is a trade one, neither the consumer nor the producer taking much 
part. Some months ago the Butchers' Association met in con- 
ference with the Western range men and others to organise a 
determined fight on the dressed beef interest. The range men 
came to St. Louis, saw the butchers, and went home without 
taking any action. The butchers are now engaged in getting 
up bitter sectional fights in the diflferent State Legislatures. 
They propose, so as to offset the power of the dressed meat con- 
cerns, to have all cattle inspected on foot before they can be sold 
by the local butchers : that in fact they wish to drive us back 
to the old system of shipping cattle alive from the producing 
portions of the country to the points where they were wanted. 
The dressed beef men are willing now, as they always have 
been, to have National instead of State inspection. In this case it 
will be noticed that the consumer is not consulted. The butchers 
want, in fact, to get back their old trade, and they propose to 
legislate themselves back into power, and in doing so they pro- 
pose to have a local inspector paid by the State Government at 
every little town ; while the Western producer at least, and the 
dressed beef men, want National inspectors at the great central 
WS^rkets of the country. The butchers and their plique have 
