Stockyard

“ I see before me a number of gentlemen with whom I have the honour to be more or less acquainted. They are all hot, dirty, and disagreeable. I also see a stockyard, and within it four quarters of fresh beef, likewise hot, dirty, and disagreeable. ”

“ But, as a matter of fact, the packing-houses control the stockyards, dominate the brokers, who are constantly near to them and far from the cattle owners, and the man on the range who once ships his cattle over the railroads, forthwith places himself at the mercy of the packer—the stock having been shipped must be fed and cared for either on the cars or in the yards, and this takes money—so the quicker the sale of them is made the better for the owner. ”

“ The volume of business here transacted reaches out into all the chief grazing lands of the far West. The stockyards are supposed to be run by companies independent of the packing-houses, and to be merely hotels where the cattle brought in may be lodged and boarded until sold, and the cattle brokers are presumed to be the agents of the cattle owners who have shipped the stock, and to procure for these owners the highest price possible. ”

“ Shipments of grain and breadstuffs to Central and South America, Cuba, Great Britain, and Germany constitute the city's leading exports.
[103]
As a live-stock market it is no less important. The National Stockyards, located on the Illinois side of the river, contain several hundred acres. Though packing houses and slaughtering houses occupy some of this land, the main part is covered with sheds, pens, and enclosures for the reception and sale of live animals. Millions of cattle, hogs, and sheep are handled here every year. ”

“ In those stockyards they kill thousands of cattle every year to give us beef to eat. When the cattle come to these stockyards they are not tame cattle like the cows we see out in our pastures, but they are cattle that have pastured out on the great broad prairies, and they have seen very few people. ”

“ We arrived, if I remember rightly, on a Wednesday and put our cattle and horses in the stockyards near the Michigan Street depot. As I have related, we sold on Thursday and Friday about three-fifths of the cattle. I wanted to sell all, but followed the judgment of the Boss and sold three hundred head and put a little over five thousand dollars in my banking account.
On Saturday night the alarm bells began to ring and awoke me. I slipped into my breeches, shirt and boots and a youthful curiosity exciting me, I raced downstairs, got Blue Devil from the stable and rode out to the fire. ”

“ The stockyards are not a place of rest or final destination. Thousands of head of live stock arrive daily by carload and trainload lots, and must be promptly sold and disposed of and moved out, to give place to the constantly flowing traffic that presses behind. ”

“ It has been declared, and with considerable truth, that at the American stockyards the development of the by-products is every whit as extensive and as important as the preparation of the ostensible staple product. It is actually more profitable, and brings in as great if not greater revenue. ”

“ Ready had run up a very neat little outhouse of plank, as a kitchen for Juno, and another week was fully employed as follows: the stores were divided; those of least consequence, and the salt provisions, flour, and the garden produce, &c., were put into the old house; the casks of powder and most of the cartridges were also put there for security; but a cask of beef, of pork, and flour, all the iron-work and nails, canvas, &c., were stowed away for the present under the new house, which had, when built as a storehouse, been raised four feet from the ground to make a shelter for the stock. ”

“ Odd pieces of furniture, work-boxes, lamps and candelabra, were arranged here and there, to stand out in bold relief amid an immense array of pencils, tweezers, scissors, penknives, tooth-picks, darning-needles, and such trifles. The stalls of the stable were tenanted by mules, cows, hogs, with whole litters of pigs, and varieties of poultry. The warehouse groaned under the weight of barrels of sugar, molasses, and rice, and bushels of meal, potatoes, turnips, and corn. ”

“ As every house has a garden, each family raises its own vegetables, and some poultry, and each family has also its own bakeoven. For such things as are not raised in Economy, there is a store provided, from which members with the knowledge of the directors, may purchase what is necessary, and the people of the vicinity may also do the same. The warehouse and store are for the present in wooden buildings, but in a short time the requisite brick buildings will be erected. ”

“ The men dash about brandishing sticks till they are out of breath; the women stand screaming in the farm-yard. And when you have managed to drive the cows or the sheep into their paddock and put up the rails, you get back to the house nicely 'rested' to find the pea-soup cold and full of flies, the pork under the table gnawed by dogs and cats, and you eat what you can lay your hands on, watching for the next trick the wretched animals are getting ready to play on you. ”

“ On the north side of the line, opposite the ice-house, the dairy-house; then a square with a small power-house for its centre, a woodhouse, a horse barn for the farm horses, a granary and a forage barn for its four corners. Beyond this square to the west was the fruit-house and the tool-house—the latter large enough to house all the farm machinery we should ever need. I have a horror of the economy that leaves good tools to sky and clouds without protection. ”

“ Year by year the factory grew and developed, until the green hay-fields, with the trout stream flowing through them, became gradually covered with buildings. To-day the factory seems like a small town in itself, intersected by streets, and surrounded by its own railway. But the greenness of the country clings wherever a chance is afforded, ivy and other creepers adorning the brick walls, window boxes bright with flowers, and trees planted here and there; for no opportunity has been neglected of making the surroundings beautiful.
Bournville Cocoa Works: Office Buildings. ”

“ Near by lives a dairy farmer, who, without going to the length of the famous stock-breeder whose stalls are the pride of the district, yet fills his meadows with a handsome herd of productive shorthorns, giving splendid results in butter, milk, and cheese, and who sends to the market a succession of animals which, if not equal to the gigantic prize beasts, are nevertheless valuable to the consumer. This tenant does good work, both for himself and for the labourers, the landlord, and the country. ”

“ Each system of husbandry, too, will give prominence to certain departments of the homestead. Thus in a dairy farm, the cow-house and the dairy offices are the chief feature. On a fattening farm, prominence must be given to boxes and covered yards, and to the arrangements for preparing food. On a mixed farm, which generally partakes of all systems, the buildings must be more numerous, and suited in some respects to all purposes. ”

“ The whole fruit and vegetable product of the temperate zone is at his door, and he has but to put forth his hand and take it. The skilled housewife makes wonderful provision against winter from the opulence of summer, and her storehouse is crowded with innumerable glass cells rich in the spoils of orchard and garden. There is scant use for the grocer and the butcher under such conditions. I am so well convinced that my estimate of $5 a month is liberal that I have taxed the account with all the salt used on the farm. ”

“ It hath in it one hundred and forty stalls for the butchers, all covered over, and of the bigness of those in the beef-market. In the middle of this Green yard Market, north to south, is a row of shops, with kitchens, or rooms over them, for fishmongers; and, also, on the south side and west end, are houses and shops also for fishmongers. Towards the east end of this yard is erected a fair market-house, standing upon columns, with vaults underneath, and rooms above, with a bell-tower and a clock, and under it are butchers’ stalls. ”

“ One comprises the hotel-cum-brewery, a smithy, and a general store; the other can boast of two stores, a harness-maker's, an often-vacant butcher's shop, and a private dwelling-house. Both clusters are snugly ensconced, hidden among the very numerous gum trees with which the whole flat is dotted; between them some particularly high and shady trees give shelter to the township [Pg 70] stock. Cattle are ever to be seen reposefully cud-chewing during the hotter portions of the semi-tropical days. ”

“ Cloth-makers, dyers, tanners, and fullers were near an accessible supply of running water, upon which their trade depended. Streets were often named by the trade located there, such as Butcher Row, Pot Row, Cordwainer Row, Ironmonger Row, Wheeler Row, and Fish Row. Hirers of labor and sellers of wheat, hay, livestock, dairy products, apples and wine, meat, poultry, fish and pies, timber and cloth all had a distinct location. Some young men were apprenticed to craftsmen to assist them and learn their craft. ”

“ It is needless to add that the homestead should be as near the centre of the farm as possible, and that the buildings should abut upon a hard road. Scattered buildings are very objectionable; for although fieldbarns and yards economise cartage of both crop and manure, they occasion great loss of time in attending to stock, and the stock in the outlying yards can never be so much under the master's eye as is desirable. The best arrangement for outlying fields beyond reach of the dung-cart is not outlying barn-yards, but sheepfolding and green manuring. ”

“ Not only were these farms visibly populated by persons who appeared to be permanently attached to their respective localities, but at many of them things were offered for sale—such as home-made pastry, souvenirs, fresh poultry, antique furniture, brass door-knockers, milk and eggs, hand-painted crockery, table board, garden truck, molasses taffy, laundry soap and livestock. ”

“ The brickyard paid ten cents a cubic yard for the clay. As for the rest of the ranch, the land was good in patches, where it was cleared, like the vegetable garden and the vineyard, but the rest of it was too much up-and-down."
"You're not a farmer," Daylight said. The young man laughed and shook his head. "No; I'm a telegraph operator. But the wife and I decided to take a two years' vacation, and... here we are But the time's about up. I'm going back into the office this fall after I get the grapes off."
Yes, there were about eleven acres in the vineyard--wine grapes. ”

“ The stalls are as sweet, clean and orderly as is the parlor which we have just left, and snowy curtains hang above the windows over them, the only apparent difference between the stable and the parlor being that the cattle stand upon fresh, fragrant straw, instead of a clean carpet. From the stable we are conducted to an adjoining building, which is the cheese factory, and to the room in which are assembled the farmer, his wife and two servants. ”

“ The stock, with the pathetic tameness of thirst, come from all parts of the farm to congregate close round the house; the inquiring ostriches tapping with their bills on the windows as they look in at you, and the cattle lowing in piteous appeal for water ”

“ Every clothier keeps one horse, at least, to carry his manufactures to the market, and everyone generally keeps a cow or two or more for his family. By this means the small pieces of inclosed land about each house are occupied, for they scarce sow corn enough to feed their poultry.... The houses are full of lusty fellows, some at the dye-vat, some at the looms, others dressing the cloths, the women or children carding or spinning, being all employed, from the youngest to the oldest. ”

“ Thus, in a corn farm, a certain proportion of stock is fattened and dairy produce is prepared, although its staple may be grain. The arable stock farm is principally devoted to the rearing and fattening of cattle for the fat markets, and crops and field operations are all directed with a view to that object. ”

“ The low line of sheds which extend from the barn on each side of the yard, may be used for the carts, and wagons of the place; or, racks and mangers may be 297 fitted up in them, for outside cattle to consume the straw and coarse forage; or, they may be carried higher than in our plan, and floored overhead, and hay, or other food stored in them for the stock. They are so placed merely to give the idea. ”

“ It is with this view that annually a store is made, sufficient for the year’s consumption, by every family that can afford it. About two hundred head of poultry were bought, with some sheep and lambs; rice, flour, wheat, figs, raisins, in fact everything that could be called dry stores, was laid in, enough for six or eight months, with oil, butter, candles, soap, &c. ”

“ An empty void now, save on the weekly market-day, that occasion finds its broad, cobble-stoned space thickly covered with stalls, while groups of farmers throng the pavements, and with their samples of corn displayed in the palms of their hands sell and buy in immense quantities. ”

“ Especially designed machinery, accomplishes this otherwise unpleasant task, quickly and easily. By this convenient arrangement, with a very little labor, these buildings, and the stock housed in them, can at all times, be kept healthy and clean. A most important consideration!
Everywhere, appear evidences, of the farms increasing wealth in live stock. Great herds of fine cattle, are fattening in the fields, pastures and barns. Prize collections of choice sheep, are roaming over grassy slopes. ”

“ All which stalls are either under warehouses above head, or sheltered from the weather by roofs over them. This yard is, on Tuesdays, a market for leather, to which the tanners do resort. On Thursdays the waggons from Colchester, and other parts, come with Baiz, etc., and also the Felmongers with their wool; and on Fridays it is a market for raw hides, besides Saturdays for Beef, as also other provisions. ”