228 Ch'owth and Direlopment of the Trade in frozen Mutton. 
Buenos Ayres paper, La P/'ensa, of January 1, 1888, as showing 
the export of very nearly a million carcasses in the year 1887 : — • 
Sansinena 360,000, for export only.* 
Drabble 282,000 
Terrason 184,492 
Nelsou 170,000 
Total 996,492 carcasses. 
Allowing for the sheep despatched from Buenos Ayres in the 
last month of the year, which would only come here in the follow- 
ing January, it would seem, if this Argentine record is correct, 
that something like f'y of the export finds its way to other than 
British markets. 
The supply directed to Paris was, a year ago, coming in at 
a rate of about 10,000 carcasses a month. There is, however, a 
serious obstacle to the development of a French trade suffi- 
ciently large to divert any considerable portion of the Argen- 
tine quota i'rom our ports. The duty on mutton from the River 
Plate entering France, which stood at 7 centimes in 1885, has 
been raised to 12 centimes per kilograrqme, or 12 francs per 
100 kilos. — that is, over \d. per lb. ; while the charge for the 
somewhat elaborate and tedious process of inspection at the 
port adds another franc to the duty. The tariff under the con- 
ventional arrangement, however, between France and Germany 
allows of the entry of frozen sheep or other dead meat from the 
latter country at one fourth of that rate of duty. The Plate 
sheep must therefore, and as a matter of fact do, encounter con- 
siderable competition in the Paris market from German sheep 
killed at or beyond Strasburg. I found that the latter were last 
summer arriving in no inconsiderable quantities, and were dis- 
posed of to purchasers at certain of the railway termini, without 
even entering the central market of the " Halles." The dimen- 
sions of the German trade have been given me as 500 carcasses 
daily — half as much again as the Argentine sales — and about 
15,000 per month. The River Plate sheep entering France 
direct by Havre have an advantage over those of New 
Zealand, which have a more costly journey to make, and have to 
be transhipped in London. An attemj^t made to start the 
latter trade has not proved successful. 
The English arrivals from the Plate are practically directed to 
two ports, London and Liverpool, the latter taking now four fifths 
of the whole ; but certain shipments have been lately received in 
Glasgow, and one at least I observe is entered as touching at 
' Besides 240,000 for local consumption in Buenos Ayres, 
