Each half barrel shall have a capacity of sixteen gallons and must be branded, if it contains beef, by burning on its head “Navy Beef,” name of the contractor, name of packer’s brand, and on the bung stave, the letter “P.”
Refrigerator Boxes.
—In the shipping of fresh meats which are to be sent by express, or where small quantities are sent in insufficient amounts to warrant the use of a car, thousands of refrigerator boxes are used. In such cases a good refrigerator box is made necessary in the handling of the product to the trade—a box that will stand the abuse, wear and tear in shipping and at the same time one that is not excessively heavy, adding unnecessarily to the express charges. The dimensions given below are for wooden boxes which are generally made of 1-inch clear pine lumber, the corners being securely fastened with angle iron, or with heavy galvanized iron, and the covers put on with specially strong hinges as the boxes meet with a great deal of hard usage and when filled must necessarily be strong in order to withstand the jar and strain.
A galvanized iron box containing the meat is placed inside of the wooden box, leaving about two inches of space around it and four inches of space on top. The meat to be shipped is packed tightly into the galvanized iron box, which is then placed in the wooden box and the space around the sides and top filled with crushed ice. In this condition meat will keep fresh in hot weather for from thirty-six to forty-eight hours under ordinary conditions.
The following dimensions are those generally in use for the different sized wooden boxes enumerated:
| Capacity | Inside measure, inches | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | pounds | 26 | × | 16 | ¹⁄₂ | × | 9 | |
| 100 | pounds | 24 | × | 18 | × | 14 | ||
| 100 | pounds | 26 | × | 18 | × | 13 | ||
| 200 | pounds | 34 | × | 18 | × | 18 | ¹⁄₂ | |
| 200 | pounds | 34 | × | 20 | × | 16 | ||
| 300 | pounds | 38 | × | 24 | × | 19 | ||
| 500 | pounds | 42 | × | 28 | × | 18 | ¹⁄₂ | |
CHAPTER XXIX
DEPARTMENTAL ACCOUNTING
Departmental Accounting — Expense Accounts — Departments — Purchases — Inventories — Store Accounts — Labor Charged to Departments and Sub-Divisions — General Principles.
Why and How.
—The large packing houses are usually operated on a departmental basis, so that monthly or yearly, a balance can be drawn off showing the profit and loss of each department. There is a great advantage in handling a large business in this manner, for it is probable that while in the aggregate the house is making money, there might be departments that are losing money continuously without being detected unless each one is put on an individual basis.