At the extensive cattle yards of Berlin, which are under control of an excellent administration, and perfectly arranged, it was impossible, for instance, on a well-supplied market day to find a single dozen corn-fed young steers that would make good enough beef for first-class custom in New York. The bulk of cattle offered for sale was made up of oxen that had been overworked—they had horns bigger than themselves—and the remainder were old cows and bulls.
Of the bovine family, the branch most celebrated for the good quality of beef is the Durhams or Shorthorns. It is only fifty years ago that the first were imported to this country from England, and so well have they prospered and multiplied that the finest and best specimens of the race are now found in these United States. They are now freely exported, at large prices, to the mother-country, where they are highly prized for breeding purposes. There are farms in Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and even in Missouri and Kansas, that turn out annually from 300 to 1,000 head of fatted, corn-fed cattle, from two to four years old, and weighing from 1,500 to 2,500 pounds per head.
As to mutton, this country is already beginning to occupy a position second to none. We may probably not as yet surpass England in this respect, but we have learned a great deal on this subject during the past thirty years; hence the American breed of sheep has considerably improved. The quality and flavor of our mutton is improving to that extent that a long time cannot possibly elapse before the prejudice now existing in favor of the English article must give way to the honest acknowledgment that the American mutton, if not superior to, stands at least fully on a par with, the English rival.
Our farmers and agriculturists have learned a great deal on this question. They now know that, as to early lambs, for instance, the ewes should be strong, and kept in good condition, so that they can supply the lambs with plenty of milk. They are now kept in a warm barn where the cold winds do not touch them, and where the sun can shine on them. They commence feeding them by putting a little bran in the lamb’s mouth, so that it can taste it, and the lambs commence eating from a box separate from the sheep. They generally feed them with cracked corn or meal, and sometimes oats and corn ground together, with plenty of milk from the ewes. If kept in good order and well fed, they will be ready for market by the time they are six to eight weeks old. After the month of June, lambs come from New York State—mostly from Dutchess County. They are turned out to graze on the hills, where some cracked corn and meal are put in the fields, so they can eat it at their pleasure. Many of the late sheep and lambs come from Canada. Two of the largest sheep ever sold in New York were raised by Mr. Vail, of Dutchess County, and sold by A. Luyster to Mr. L. Delmonico for the sum of $100. The two weighed, alive, 632 lbs., and dressed, 420 lbs.
One of the leading questions that directly affects the American cuisine is the contest now progressing as to the transportation of animal food to the great Eastern markets. Heretofore live cattle were transported to, and slaughtered at, the places of consumption. This so-called home-slaughtering interest has within the past few years experienced great competition with the slaughterers of cattle in the far West, who have brought their meats to the Eastern market in refrigerator-cars. The great question now is: Which is the better way, and by which method are the public interests served the best, as well as the sanitary condition of this important article of food most improved?
There can be no doubt that, while this controversy lasts, the consumer has already been benefited, and the transportation of live cattle has already been greatly facilitated and improved. The quality of the meat does not depend upon the place where the animal is slaughtered, but it does depend upon the state of the animal’s health when it is slaughtered. Let the cattle-cars be improved so that cattle can be transported without being knocked about and bruised, and let them be properly fed and watered while in transit; after making the long journey from the far West, let them be well rested and cooled off before slaughtering.
The Western dressed-beef men will also have to be on their mettle in order to meet the exigencies of the times. Let them keep their wild prairie cattle and their scalawags out of the better markets, handle their beef carefully, keep it subjected to a uniform temperature of about 38° Fahrenheit, discard all artificial preservative means, and all opponents to their interests will be bereft of argument.
OUR MARKETS.
Our markets contain an abundant supply of poultry and game of an exceptionally fine quality. For superior and palatable chickens we are recommended to those raised about the creameries of New Jersey. The hand-fed geese and ducks of Rhode Island rival in flavor and delicacy the celebrated Caneton-de-Rouen, while the American turkeys are famous the world over. To give any adequate idea of the quantity of game which comes from the vast feeding-grounds of this country, or to enumerate substantially every form in which, during the different seasons, game appears in market, would require too much space.