24 
BULLETIN" 1317, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
The average experience in the meat business of 2,937 retailers from 
vrhom information was secured was 12.54 years (Table 10). There 
are wide variations in the average experience of operators of the 
various types of stores. Operators of straight meat markets and 
stalls in public markets are men of unusually long experience, Of 
the 804 operators of straight meat markets. 410, or 51 per cent, had 
been in the meat business 20 years or longer : only 32, or not quite 
4 per cent, were men of less than one year's experience. Of the 
operators of stalls in markets, 93, or 55 per cent, were men of 20 or 
more years of experience : only 5, or less than 3 per cent, had been 
in the meat business less than one year. On the other hand, only 
325, or 18 per cent, of the operators of combination meat and grocery 
stores were men of 20 or more years of experience with meats, while 
201. or 11 per cent, had had less than 1 year of such experience. 
These figures are merely corroborative of what is generally known 
concerning the development of the trade. 
Germans and Scandinavians, representative of the older imrnigra- 
tion and especially numerous by comparison in straight meat mar- 
kets, are men of long experience in the meat business. The average 
total number of years of experience for these racial groups was 
found to be 24.78 and 22.75 years, respectively, as compared with 
14.37 years for those of British nativity and 14.21 years for those 
of American birth. Representatives of the new immigration, the 
racial types found more largely by comparison in combination stores, 
are of less experience. (See Table 11.) 
Table 11. — Experience in meat business of dealers according to nationalities 
Straight meat markets 
Combination meat and 
grocery stores 
All stores com- 
bined 
Nationality 
Num- 
ber 
re- 
port- 
ing 
Average 
number 
years at 
present 
location 
Average 
total 
years in 
meat 
business 
Num- 
ber 
re- 
port- 
ing 
Average 
number 
years at 
present 
location 
Average 
total 
years in 
meat 
business 
Average 
number 
years at 
present 
location 
Average 
total 
years in 
meat 
business 
Germanv . .. 
127 
21 
23 
582 
32 
35 
70 
2 
22 
11.45 
12.71 
4.52 
6.61 
5.72 
5. 55 
5.81 
1.75 
4,82 
27.48 
26.52 
18.06 
19.33 
17.47 
21.34 
16.98 
12.50 
9.09 
56 
19 
45 
1,140 
99 
78 
172 
45 
195 
44 
8.63 
8.32 
5.30 
5.81 
5.41 
4.27 
3.85 
5.93 
4,58 
a 57 
18.67 
18.58 
12.49 
11.59 
10.36 
7.66 
8.94 
8.61 
7.22 
6.10 
10.59 
10.62 
5.04 
6.08 
5.49 
4.67 
4.42 
5.75 
4.60 
3.57 
24.78 
Sweden, Norway, Den- 
mark . .. 
22.75 
England, Ireland, Scot- 
14 37 
Native American 
Austro-Hungary. 
14.21 
12.10 
Poland . ... 
11.90 
11.27 
Greece . 
8.78 
Italy 
7.41 
Syria . .. . . 
6.10 
NATIONALITIES AXD RACES OF DEALERS 
Although the canvass of only a limited number of cities and 
counties does not furnish indications of minute accuracy regarding 
nativity of all retail meat dealers, it is believed that the survey was 
comprehensive enough to be indicative of the general situation. 
Fairly complete information on this point was obtained in 15 cities 
and in 8 counties, these latter including 13 additional urban dis- 
tricts, making a total of 28 of the 33 urban districts included in the 
general canvass. The summary does not include chain stores and 
department stores, which are regularly conducted by a hired man- 
