The Herald, 1911-10-13, Page 5Thc
THE
ricc of Hogs
ILLPAM AVES 0012
ANY, Li iircD
T ,is probable that the practice of eening out 'weekly the price
which packere will pay for hogs the &snowing week, has been
the chief cause for the widespread impression that the price
named is fixed through arrangement and understanding be
-
tweets the packers. In view of the recent attack made upon
Paokers, a statement which will explain why nprice is thus sent out,
and the conditions associated with it, may serve & useful purpose.
For the most .part the cattle and small stock (sheep, leasabsand
calves) which come to the Cattle Markets in Toronto are bargained for
on arrival, If the market is fa,vorable, the drovers make a profit. If
the market is unfavorable, they, suffer a loss. The price of cattle and
email °stook, therefore, is determined each market day by the ordinary
competitive conditions prevailing upon public markets. The price
which the drover pays in the country the next week is determined by
his view of what he hopes to receive when the stock is offered for sale.
by him upon either of the markets in this city or in Montreal.
The hog situation is entirely different. After the, manner of well
recognized market eonditions, there has been no public marketin On-
tario upon which hogs have been offered for sale. For thirty years:
80 to SO per cent. of the hogs on the Toronto Cattle Market have been •
delivered on the market for one buyer, and at a. price agreed upon be-
fore the hogs were shipped. Five -sixths of the packing houses in
Ontario have not only not bought hogs upon the Toronto Cattle Merket,
but they have not bought hogs upon any public market, because there
have been no markets upon which hogs have been offered for sale.
The Union Stock Yards Company at Toronto Junction are now endeav-
oring to establish a eompetitive open market upon which hogs will be
offered for sale. Time only will determine the success or failure of
this effort.
As, therefore, there has been no open market for hogs. the price
(which the packer pays for is hogs has had to be determined by a
different method, and under different circumstances than the open
market conditions have established for cattle and small stock.
The pressure of these circumstances has developed the practice
which causes each packing establishment to depend chiefly for its supply
of hogs weekly upon drovers who ship regularly to it. To establish
this regularity, the respective houses have found it necessary, at the
and of each week, to advise drovers the price they would pa.y for hogs
fshipped to them the fallowing week. This custom is followed in Den-
mark and. Ireland, the weekly price, however, being sent to farmers
in place of drovers.
In accordance with these conditions, the officers of this Company
determine on Friday afternoon of each week the price they will name
to drovers for shipment the following week. This advice covers a
price free on cars at the shipping peint, or delivered into the yards at
our factory, or fed and watered hogs delivered on the Toronto Cattle
Market. In reaching this determination we are governed by our read-
ing of the domestic and exports xnarkets, by cable advices covering
Danish and Irish killings, and cable advices. telling of the quantity of
American products -which have been landed at the various ports. in
Great Britain. We also have to interpret from these conditions, which
ore common to the trade, how the judgment of our competitors will be
affected by them, and 'what conclusions they will likely reach as to the
• buying price they will name for -aid' following week.
Raving decided the price:we will name, we communicate it to drov-
• era by telephone or telegram''M
s to pointi East as far as ontreal, West
asfar Chathean, mitt Nor
th e,s far 'as hogs ,are raised in suffibient
quantities to give weekly deliveries..
In all the foregoing we have neither conference, understanding nor
furamgenient, directly or indirectly, with any other packer, nor have
we had any such, connection at any time during the past twenty years.
If other packers offer a higher price, we- learn of it through tele-
graph or telephone communicationa from drovers in various parts of
the country, who advise they are unable to buy at the price we, have
awned because drovers from competitive houses are paying a higher
price. Each packer in the trade doubtless has similar advices when
the circumstances warrant it.
When such advicesreach us, we determine our conduct by a. variety
of considerations, and we will, as will other packers similarly placed,
refuse to follow the lead set by others, or accept such lead as inevitable,
as we may have a favorable or unfavorable view of the market.
The effect of the decision either way is reflected in the volume of
deliveries. If we or others similarly placed refuse to advance, while
other packers are active, there will be a shrinkage of from 10 to 50 per
cent. from the normal receipts of hogs. If we follow the advance, we
will secure our normal quantity, with possibly some surplus added.
It is alleged that the trade generally await information as to the
buying price named by this Company before sending out their own ad-
vices. On reflection it will be recognized that this is not an unnatural
course to follow. By reason of the extent of our operations, the price
ixiamed by this Company is known in every part of the Province, and
authoritatively .establishes the minimum price which can be paid. For
necessitous reasons no ether house can buy at a lower price. Inas-
much, however, as the aggregate purchases by other packers. represent
70 per cent. of the total deliveries of hogs in Ontario and Quebec, there
• is no reason why, after our price is known, a higher price should not
be named by some or all of our competitors, if their reading of the
market differs from ours. As a matter of fact, this is precisely what
Cecurs, and probably there are as many weeks in the year when our
price is exceeded and we must follow others, as when eur price is ac-
cepted and others follow us.
We would welcome conditions which would establish the purchase
of hogs upon public markets on an openly competitive basis. If pack-
ers could buy hogs after the same manner as cattle are now bought,
they would always have the measure of their competitors, whereas
tender existing conditions we have to guess at their xneasurernent.
Moreover, when we desired to take hogs freely, we could do so, and
when we desired to step aside from the market, we could clo so. Used&
existing conditions no packer can afford to break with his regular ship -
and frequently has to take stock when he would prefer to leave
t alone.
The tendency under the present method is for packers weekly to
estimate how high a pric.e they clue pay, rather than how low a price
they will name, for it must he borne in mind that the aggregate capa-
icity of the houses greatly exceeds the supply of hogs, and that practi-
cally the profit or loss of the operations of a packing house are deter-
mined by the volume of business secured. Therefore, when we are
seeking to determine each Friday evening the buying price we will
name for the following week, back of all else is the pressure which
demands qualitity of hogs, and the anxiety felt that if we do not name
st, price high enough to command quantity; we may find our supplies
tut off.
The popular view of commercial sagacity would suggest that the
;remedy for such difficulties would be found in an understanding being
ecathed by agreement between the packers: The significant fact is
%hat the packers have refused to do so. Probably nobusiness in
Canada is more completely free from either the letter or the spirit of
what is known as a Trust, than. this rnuch-abused packing business.
The real relation of the packers to the hog industry has been an hon-
*rable one of high merit.
The William Davies Company, Limited
TORONTO.
OU) AGE ETU& •
Englishman Says Eat Porrodge,
"Work Hard" Adds Woman.
The celebration of a birthday in
the circle of a Preston, England,
family named Gardner draws at-
tention to the fact that the total age
of this family of eleven approaches
700 years.. There are six brothers
and five sisters, of whom the young-
est is a "girl" of 51 and the oldest a
"boy" in his 73rd year. Not lees
remarkable than the longevity of
the family is the fact that they artt
all in good health and working yet
—the men at their occupations and
the women at looking after their
homes. -
Asked as to what he attributed
the good health of the family, Rich-
ard Gardner, who is 60, answered
"Porridge! We were brought up
on porridge. It was the, meal both
morning and night, and meat was
rarely tasted, the midday inner,
usually consisting of bread and but-
ter. It was uncommon to have
more than half a. pound of meat and
a quarter pound of suet on the
table at one time to serve the whole
of us."
There is another wonderful old
centenarian, named Mrs. Ann
Dovey, down in Wolverhampton,
who has just celebrated her 1.03rd
birthday. Asked what was her re-
cipe for longevity, she said, "Work
hard and eat heartily, I've done
both," she said, "for I've had nine
children, and have always had to
work very hard."
Her memory is good and her most
treasured recollection is when the
late Queen Victoria, then a, girl,
was being driven in a carriage at-
terfeled by the Duchess of ient.
The young princess was thirsty, the
carriage pulled up at a wayside inn
kept by Mrs. Dovey's parents, and
in response to a, request for a glass
of water,Mrs. Davey, then .ayoung
woman lereelf, handed it to the
princess.
A FINE NIGHT-CAP.
The Best Thing in the World to .go
to Bed and Sleep on.
"My wife and I find that 4 tea-
spoonfuls of Grape -Nuts and ateup
of hot milk, or some dream, with
it, makes the finest night-cap in the
world," says an Allegheny,
man.
"We go to sleep as soon ttee.
strike the bed, and slumber
babies till rising time in the morn-
ing.
"It is about 3 years now since we
began to use Grape -Nuts food. and
we always have it for breakfast and
before retiring and sometimes 'for
lunch. I was so sick from what the
doctors called acute indigestion and
brain fag before I began to use
Grape -Nuts that 1 could neither
eat, sleep nor work with any com-
fort.
"I was afflicted at the same time
with the most intense pains, accom-
panied by a racking headache and
backache, every time I tried to eat
anything. Notwithstanding an un-
usual pressure from my profession-
al duties, I was compelled for a
time to give up my work altogether.
"Then I put myself on a diet of
Grape -Nuts and cream alone, with
an occasional cup of Postum as a
runner-up, and sometimes a little
dry toast. I assure you that in less
than a week I felt like a, new man;
I had gained six pounds in weight,
could sleep well and think well.
t`The good work went on, and 1
was soon ready to return to busi-
stess, and have been hard at it,
and enjoying it ever since.
"Command me at any tune any
one enquires as to the merits of
Grape -Nuts. You will find me al-
ways ready to testify." Name
given by Postum Co., Battle Creek,
Mich.
Read the little book, "The Read
to Wellville," in pkgs. • There's a
reason."
Ever read the above letter? A new one
appears from time to time. They ere
genuine, true and full of human interest.
STOCK STORY.
"When I was a barefoot lad,"
said Mr. Dustin Stax, "I had to
spend a good deal of time minding
the stock en father's farm. I'll
never forget the day when father
told me to take a. rope and hold a
couple of bull calves.
"What did they do I"
"They scorched my hands with
the rope and then turned around
and stepped on
"Unruly disposition V'
"No. Wonderful instinct. They
recognized me at a glance as a
small stockholder."
EQUIVOCAL.
"My good, man, are ,N5u, im-
pressed with this talk abeut, the
effects of whisky ?"
aes, ir 1 rist drink it in."
MANE SAFE INVEST
PARIVI MORTOARES AS !NYE
HAVE SOME VERY WEAK FE
The Personadement Whieh
Often overlook
Make $ the Pa
interest Sometimes of Doubtfu
ty—The Danger Of Having a
••••••••••
The articles contributed by
are for the sole purpose of guid
Peetive investors, ad., if Douai.
ng them from losing moneY.
plaeing it in "wild -oat" FuterP1
impartial and reliable characte
information may be relied upo
writer of these articles and the
of this paper have no interests
in connection with this matter ot
.thoee of the reader. -
Turning from generalitffierte t e
cationof the principles of invest ent laid
down in the earlier articles ofilhis series
to classes of securities we will take up in
turn the chief, points to be considered in
'connection with the various forms of
"promise -to -pay" investments.
Readers will remember that investments
are divided into two general classes —
equitiee and promises to 'pay. Equities
,consist in shares and stocks of various
• companies. These are never repayable.
Promises to pay. on the other hand, are
securities -which represent a sum of
money 'borrowed. by the person, =mild.-
palitY, state or company issuing them,
and are repayable after a definite period
of time. 'Under this head are bonds, de-
bentures, mortgages, etc.
In this class, the most important in
Canada are real estate mortgagee, mu-
nicipal, industrial company bonds and
railroad equipment bonds, and provin-
cial and Dominion loans.
The best known, of course, are real es-
tate mortgages. It is quite superfluous to
enlarge here on the details of the form
`of a real estate mortgage. Its usual form
consists of a promise to pay the amount
of the loan at maturity together with a
certain amount of interest on certain
dates. It includes also a transfer of the
property mortgaged, which, however, is
non -effective, unless some detail of the
conditions of the mortgage is not ful-
filled—such, for instance, as the payment
of the interest.
The question of real estate mortgagee
as investments, however, is a matter
-Which relatively very few investors have
approached in a full enlightened man-
or The average man figures in some
SY' as this: ;Will Smith wants me
to' lend him KAM. • His farm is worth
.atsits as it now stands and the interest
at1 per cent. comes to sueh a small
amount that there is no danger that he
will not be able to pay it. I certainly
don't stand to lose anything," and makes
the investineut.
Now, probably his estimation of the
matter is quite correct. Ile did not, how -
over, look on the matter in a broad man-
ner. First, as to the safety of a mort-
gage. Like everything else, it depends on
the amount of margin between the sum
loaned and the value of the property. Al-
most as important, it depends on the
character of the person making the mort-
gage. •
It must always be borne in mind that
a mortgage to.,be of any real value re-
quires tliat the property be kept up to
its' value by the work. as a rule, of the
individual to *whom the money is loaned.
If he is a careful, progressive man, who
has borrowed, porhaps to improve his
farm in a manner which will make it
more productive, this question need not
be enquired into further. If, however,
he is a man whose carelessness has got
him into financial difficulties, he may let
his farm run down, in a few years, to
such an extent that, even if one were to
foreclose the mortgage, there would be
a very small value, and even that might
not be got in the event of a forced sale.
Tho safety of interest does not depend
altogether on this point. A bad year may
result in the farm being run at a net
less and the farmer may find it difficult,
or -impossible, to meet the interest. This
point is whore the rural "note shaver"
Makes his money. The average investor,
ItOwever, is not eager to profit by forcing
a man to the wall. Perhaps he is a per-
sonal friend. At all events it is a cold-
blooded thing to do to forolose a =rt.
gage just because a year's interest is in
arrears. And so, perhaps, you find it
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COM PANY
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easier on your conscience to forego the
interest until next year, when in all pro-
bability the mortagee will be able to
catch up his arrears. Perhaps the man
comes to you personally and puts his
case in a strong way, persuades you to
let him drop his payments for several
years. You probably will came out all
right in the long run, but the certainty
of your interest is in this way sometimes
doubtful.
INVESTOR.
Next week Investor will deal with other
Points in connection with mortgage in-
vestments.
Some men are born great, some
shrink, and others never find- out
how small they really are.
Mrs. Grouch—Oh, is there any-
thing I haven't been throughesinee
I married you/ Grouch (caInily)—
Nothing in the shape of a pocket,
certainly.
In making bread rolls of any
kind, roll the dough into a ball and
then between the hands until it is
about three inches long. Some
cooks make bread sticks by press-
ing the bread dough through the
closed palm and cutting it off the
right length with scissors.
Constipation is the
root of many forms of
sickness and of an
endless E.,mount of
human misery.
Dr. Morse's
Indian
Root Ms,
thoroughly tested by
over fifty years of use,
have been proved a
safe and certain cure
for constipation and
all kindred troubles.
Try them. 4
• 25c, a box.
licious.
Potato Forte.—Two cups white
sugar, one cup butter, four eggs,
one-half cup milk, one cup cold po-
tatoes,
grated, one teaspoonful
each of cinnamon and cloves, one-
half cup chocolate, two cups flour,
two teaspoonfuls baking powder,
one cup almonds. Blanche and
chop almonds, beat eggs separately,
adding whites last. Bake in shal-
low pans in a moderate oven and.
oovcr with frosting.
Shaker Dried Corn.—Far better
than canned corn and easily made
in any home. Also, it is not neces-
sary to eat more than you wish ta'
"save it," as is done when a tan
is opened. Cut the tops of the ker-
nels first and then scrape buth,
that no chaff from the cob be in the
corn and that all corn may be used,
especially the germs. Now spread'
the corn upon earthen or eruim
plates and place in a hot oven, sti
ring and keeping the heat just b
low the browning point. In le el
than an hem- the corn on two plates
can be placed on one, Continue
filling plates and drying until as
many are placed in the oven as
can be managed in a day. If con
venient, spread in the sun next
da. and then place in cotton clog
bags and hang near the range, an
later place in some dry closet o
storeroom. The corn should no
be boiled at all but eut directl
from the cob as soon as conven'
mat after being taken from
stalks. This is convenient
handle and is far more delicici
than earned eorn,
:Apple Dumplings.—Three apple
rather tart, pare, halve and cor
Crust; Two cups of flour, one hea
ing teaspoon baking powder, pine
of salt, two heaping tablespoon
fresh lard or butter, sweet milk t
make a dough. Sift flour, bakin
powder, and salt together, cut i
shortening, and with a mixing spoo
,stir in the milk. Roll to about on
fourth inch thickness and wrap eac
half of apple and place in rath
deep pan. Take four cups of suga
one tablespoon flour, one tabl
spoon butter, and nutmeg to fla
vor ; mix together and add on
quart boiling water, stirring whit
adding, then pour over dumpling
in pan and bake one-half to three
quarters of an hour in rather ho
oven. Baste with the sauce exeunt
dumplings when half done and lei
bake a nice brown. Serve witi
cream, either whipped or plain
These are splendid.
SPECIAL DISHES.
Chili Beans.—Soak pink beam
over night in water, to which is ad-
ded a teaspoonful of soda to a
quart of the water. In the morn-
ing pour off soda water and wash
well, then buil in clear water until
tender, then add salt, a pint 0;
more uf tomatoes, an onion cut
fine, a teaspoonful of chili powder,
and a generous slice of butter.'
Cook all together slowly for an
hour or mare.
Shad Roe Salad—Bail the roe in
-
salted water. for twenty minutes
and set it aside to cool. When it
is cold carefully remove tho skin
and .cut the roe into thin slices, Ar-
range a bed of lettuce leaves in
salad bowl, lay upon it the sliced,
of roe, which should be disposed to
overlap each other, pour over thetas
a mayonnaise dressing, and serve. ,
Stuffed Cabbage Head. — Pull
off about half a dozen of the outer„.•:
leaves of a medicare sized cebbago:.
and put aside. Chop half of the
head of cabbage and mix with two'.
slices of bread which has been,
soaked in water and squeezed out,
one onion chopped, one-half pound.
pork seusagemeat, one egg, -salt
and 'pepper.' Put cloth in deep
kettle, lay the outer leaves in cloth,
and fill with above mixture. Tie
cloth and boil one, and one-half
hours in salted water. This has -the
eppeareeme at e bolted eableige and
is appetizing. •