THE PROPOSED ABATTOIRS AT HAMILTON.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2223, 7 October 1886, Page 2

THE PROPOSED ABATTOIRS AT HAMILTON.

A meeting of tho members of the Hamilton Borough Council, aettlera and other* interested in the establishment of abattoirs at Hamilton was held at the Borough Council Chambers, Hamilton, yesterday. There were present : His Worship the Mayor (Mr W. A. Graham) in the chair, Cr«. Edgecumbe. Yon Stunner, Barton, Messrs ,T. J. Barugh (Wartle, Tamahere), E. B. Walker (Monavale, Cambridge), Mr R. Reynolds (Wai Valley, Cambridge), Capt. Steele (Hamilton), Messrs A. Primrose (Kirikiriroa), John Fisher (Pnkerimu), J. Barugh, jnnr. (Tamahere), J. K. McDonald (Glencoe, Raglan), M. H. Pickering (Hautapu), Henry Reynolds (Newstead), S. S. Graham (Tamahere), E. Dickey (Kaniwhaniwa), Capt. Runciman (Marshmeadows). T. M. Hill (Hamilton.) Mr C. Hudson, District Traffic Manager of Railways, was also present at the invitation of the Mayor. The Mayor opened the proceedings by explaining the course taken by the council. So far as he had had opportunities for consulting tho country settlers, he was led to believe that the scheme was very favourably looked upon. He had communicated with the Railway Department with a view to getting some special concession in the matter of freight, and Mr Hudaon had very kindly come to the meeting that day. He had hoped to have Mr Banks with them, but that gentleman had been obliged to go to the West Coast The position of the council was this: — They were prepared to erect the yards and abattoirs, but they would, of course, require something in the nature of a guarantee. The council, as such, had [no interest in the establishing a dead meat market, but he felt sure that if the question was warmly taken up by the country, the burgesses of Hamilton would not grudge the expense. He commended tho subject to the consideration of those present. It might be that they would not agree as to the site, but he was convinced that from its position no better place than Hamilton could be found. It was the centre of the railway system of the district, and he believed the railway depart* ment would be prepared to grant them greater concessions on that account. However, perhaps Mr Hudson would give them some information on that point. He then quoted the rates and regulations of the Auckland abattoirs. These yards had been a great success. He thought Waikato should have had public abbatoirs long ago. The difficulty had lain in the question of site. Regarding the question of coat, he might say that it was proposed to spend about £1000 on the undertaking. The meeting would see that the council were willing to do something for the advancement of tho country interests. He had received a letter from Mr R. Salmon, formerly of Hamilton, who had recently made a tour of the Australian continent. The letter was as follows :—: — Mount Eden, October 4th, 1886. Mr Graham— Dear Sir, — Having just returned from Sydney and Melbourne and having visted all the principal markets I thonght it would be information for you to know that when I left Melbourne beef was realising 403 for lOOlbs, and mutton 3£d to 4d per lb. I see by Saturday's Waikato Times, that you hold a meeting on Wednesday next, to discuss the question of erecting abattoirs at Hamilton, also to establish a dead meat market, I presume in Auckland. If carried on the same lines as in Melbourne, deat meat markets I think would pay well the principal part of the meat being sold through them.— l remain, yours faithfully, Robert Salmon. The Mayor then read the following letter, headed "A Farmer's Grievance," in The Times :—: — "In consequence of the number of inquires I have had since you inserted my letter in "The Times" of the 20th May, I send a few figures to show the losses sustained by farmers from the present system of selling cattle, by guessing at their weight from their appearance. The system gives an unfair advantage to the butcher and expert over the farmer from the constant opportunities afforded to the former of testing his judgment by the actual carcase weight of every animal he kills. The uncertainty and risk to which the farmer is . exposed by this system of guesswork, and ( which must invariably, from the nature of the case, take the form of loss to him, is exemplified by the well-known case in which Sir John Lawes had the weight of | five fat Hereford oxen estimated by experts and the exact carcass weight of each animal ' { ascertained when dead. The difference between their highest and lowest estimate was | 1921b,, or equal to about 381b. per animal, below the actual weight, aud it must be remembered that in the case the estimate* of ' the butchers and experts were not made for ' a purchase, but for the purpose of seeing how near they could approximate to the { real weights. If the estimates had been ' made for the purpose of purchase in the usual way of business, my own experience J tells me it would have been from 601b. to ' 801b. under the actual weight, instead of } 381b. The only way to reduce to a mini- ! mum the risk and uncertainty referred to J is to sell on the basis of live weight subject l to the deduction of a percentage for offal 3 (say, 44 per cent.) In that way the actual 1 carcase weight of the five animals just men- 3 tioned was ascertained to within J)lb, J or a variation of less than 21b * per animal, which shows the substantial * accuracy of weights thus ascertained. * In order further to test the safety and accu- I racy of the system of selling by live weight a number of bullocks were Isold on my ac- f count to butchers by weight, and when the 1 results were known it was found that the * carcase weight, compared on the basis of ' the live weights which were taken, agreed j) with the actual carcase weight to within * 101b per animal ; and it is a well-known fact that butchers can, in cutting up an animal, * reduce the weight from 141b to as much aB *■ 181b or 201b. Following up the principle £ which lam now advocating, I have been *■ enabled to apply it to seven different lots, * in which 51 animals were sold at auctions 8 and at Smithfield without reference to c weight, at prices ranging from £1 7s 4d to r £4 Is 6d per head below the computed value v on the basis of live weights. This taken c for the seven lots was equal to an average c loss of £2 5a 5d per beast ; and if applied even at the round figure ot £2 per head to n the 2,100,000 of fat cattle estimated to be n sold in our markets, represents an annual a oss of £4,200,000 to farmers. I say nothing 8l here of the wrangles and difficulties attend- 9 ing all dealing in live stock as at present V conducted, nor of the loss sustained by the' ) English farmer in the purchase of stores for f " feeding purposes on the same unsatisfactory f 1 basis. The latter, I have reason to believe, D would amount to about 203 a head on all * purchases, which would add another d £2,000,000 to the losses, making a total loss of £6,200,000 from the present defective C 1 system of selling stock. To this may be j" added a very large amount for the loss sus- °. tamed on the sale of fat sheep from the u same cause. But I trust enough has been a] indicated to call the attention of Parliament Sl to the serious defects in the present cattle . market arrangements, and the necessity of w insisting on appliances being furnished by P market authorities for ascertaining the „ weight of all animals sold in the markets j* alive. Such facilities should not be confined H to goods of a much less valuable character ?' --such as coal, straw, roots, and hay. Hj Surely tho Agricultural Department of the Privy Council or some other department " should take steps immediately to remove the disadvantages under which the English r * farmer is placed in this respect, and afford 8£ him, at least, the opportunity which his 8a American cousin (who is his chief competitor) enjoys for carrying on his business in 01 the United States with despatch and ir safety. j* c The Mayor repeated that the council were b ' willing to do their share in the important matter, but they looked for the active BSI assistance of the country. The people of w Hamilton had interests in tho country as well as the town. He did not deny that di the town would benefit, but this would not w be unless th« country progressed. ai Captain Steele said he had very little to »< say, as he thoroughly believed in the th scheme. They all knew from personal th experience that when their cattle went out o\ of their sight they lost all control over w them, and somebody else got the profit. A He was not wedded to any any site so n( long as the abattoirs were established, be Some people ran away with the idea that f° this scheme was going to do away with a J the auctioneers. That was all nonsense, Fi because there must always bo a middle- w man. They had been trying to get up KeK c these slaughter yards for years, but the fl o money difficulty had always stood in the way. Now the council came forward and °f offered to remove the difficulty. He read th an extract from a letter from be Mr F. D. Rich aa follows:— "I j<> am in receipt of your note of the Lst In October, and very much regret that I shall not be able to attend the meeting re R' the erection of slaughter yards at Hamil- tic ton. To my mind there ought not to be C< two opinions on the subject, as far as the f a ; Waikato and Thames Valley settlers are se concerned, and that it is highly ad van- sh tageous and, the right thing to do, I «ra I

going to grow turnips this next season, and all the fat cattle and sheep in which the 1 names Valley Company have shall be slaughtered at Hamilton in place of sending them to Auckland. From conversation thut I have had with different settlers I fancy they are all agreed that it will to be their interests also." If they had a few letters like this they would have no difficulty at all. The meeting should come to some resolution that day to support the council in order that the burgesses of Hamilton should be guaranteed against loss. There were interests against which they would have to fight, but the opposition could be overcome. The present stock agents would of course become agents for the sale of dead meat. Those people who lived on the plunder of the farmers deserved no consideration. He would like to ask Mr Hudson whother the Department would put on a night train. Mr Hudson said there was a train leaving Hamilton at 4 o'clock which he thought would answer the purpose. When the trade warranted it of course a special train could be put on, but it would of course be expensive. In reply to the mayor, Mr Hudson said the rate for dead meat was the same on the Auckland as on the big Southern lines. The rate was 3ls 6d per ton for the distance from Hamilton — about l-6th of a penny per pound. But he had written to the Government, and he was authorised to say that if a considerable trade sprang up the Government would be prepared to make a special rate. He believed that the Government would carry the meat at £ of a penny per pound. Mr H. Reynolds said he thoroughly believed in the scheme. He had done so for years, and had intended to go into the trade himself. The freight charges had stood in his way to some extent, but notwith standing that he would have started had not his partner in the venture, Mr Salmon of Auckland, given up business. With regard to the question of site, he would say that though he had interests in the Cambridge as well as in the Hamilton district he certainly thought the latter was the best place, .more especially as the borough council had generously come forward with an offer to undertake the financial part of th« question. He was quite sure that the schemd was sound and practicable. At present the farmers were simply in the hands of the butchers. Mr E. B. Walker said Hamilton was unquestionably the best place fror the purpose in view. The Mayor pointed out the important results which might be anticipated from slaughtering lambs in Waikato for shipment to England and for the Auckland market. It was a fact acknowledged by all experienced men that lambs depreciate in value very considerably if not slaughtered within a short time after separating them from the ewe, and therefore there must be a loss in sending them down to Auckland to be slaughtered for shipment or sale. Mr Banks had assurred him that lambs can be shipped to England and sold to advantage, but they must be slaughtered in Waikato if they are to be shipped. From this source alone the abattoirs at Hamilton would »ecure to settlers a profitable market for their lambs, and at the same time be a source of revenue to the abattoirs. Mr Barugh said the question of transporting the meat was important, and some discussion ensued upon this point. They Mayor said no danger need be apprehended on this head. Mr T. M. Hill, butcher, Hamilton, said it was frequent handling that damaged meat. Mr Hudson said there would be no necessity for handling much as the meat could be put straight into the trucks. Mr J. K. McDonald drew attention to the high charges for freight on dead meat. He quite believed in the soundness of the schemo and thought Hamilton the best site. At the same time he considered the railway rates would be an obstacle. The Mayor said there was no doubt the Government would meet them in the matter of freights. If they relieved the department of all liability for damage and loss, a much lower rate would, he thought, be obtained. Mr H. Reynolds said he was so satisfied withe merits of the scheme that they might safely relieve the Government of all reponsibility. Mr McDonald said it must not be forgotten that there were other industries which would follow on the establishment ot abattoirs. The item of manure alone ought to pay for the freight. Cr. Yon Stunner said it was worthy of note th.it by the recent action of the borough council, farmers and others using the abattoirs would be able to secure ample paddocking. Mr Barugh was of opinion that there should be sale-yards in connection with the slaughterhouse. The Mayor said the erection of sale-yards was a portion of the scheme. Every care had been taken tj provide for the convenience of farmers. A road would be made from the Ohaupo road around the Park bill to the yards, and the council had reserved ample land for paddocks and yards. In addition to the abattoirs and yards, it was intended to erect produce yards. The stock sales, if they were held, would not interfere with Ohaupo or Cambridge. He thought he was right in saying that it would be difficult to get concessions from the Railway Department for any place past Hamilton. Mr Hudson was quite certain upon that point. Everything from a railway point of view centred in Hamilton, as it was from fhis point they worked the system. Further than this the facilities for getting to and returning from Hamilton were greater than those affecting any other place. Some discussion then ensued with reference to the freight chaiges.— Capt. Steele said he would like to have it explained how a bullock after the offal had been removed should cost more to carry than he does when alive. — Cr. Edgecumbe said it must be borne in mind that in the case of dead meat the Government took the risk, whereas in the case of live stock there was no risk.— Mr E. B. Walker said the excuse was a very poor one, as the risk could not be great. Mr John Fisher said the question in his mind was how they were to dispose of the meat after they killed it. He had no doubt about the soundness of the principle of the scheme, nor did he think anyone would question theclaims of Hamilton to be the best place for the establishment of the abattoirs. With regard to the difficulty he had referred to, he was of opinion that they should come to some arrangements with the butchers of Auckland. Many hard things were said against the butchers, but they did not get all the plums. Capt. Steele said there would be no difficulty about selling the meat. They had seen that meat was now sold dead to the butchers in Melbourne. The fanners had the meat, and they ought to be able to arrange the method upon which they would sell it. Mr H. Reynolds was in a position to say that the retail butchers of Auckland would prefer to buy the meat dead. The Mayor said the question raised by Mr Fisher was an important one. He, however, had no doubt about the success of the scheme. He believed the Auckland butchers would prefer to purchase from Waikato if the supply could be kept up. He had it from Mr Banks that the best quality of beef the Freezing Company had received was from Waikato, and the best sent to the London market came from the same place. Mr Barugh said they ought to decide at once that the establishment of retail shops in Auckland should not form part of the scheme. They should work with the butchers and secure their custom. Mr H. Reynolds quite agreed. He was satisfied that a retail business in Auckland would be a mistake. Mr R. Reynolds saw that the great difficulty would be to get the farmers to work together. Some would come forward and others would be mean enough to take advantage of their enterprise. He was thoroughly in favour of the schemo, and if tho farmers stuck together they could get out of their present position. Tho cattle were knocked about by being taken to Auckland in trucks, and the farmer did not get anything like the value for his beast 3. He did not blame the butchers, for they were perfectly justified in buying an 8001bs. bullock for £5 10s if they could. For his part he would be quite satisfied with the present market quotations if he got paid for the actual weight of the cattle sold. Mr Hill said he had it on the authority of one of the oldest butchers in Auckland that fat beasts were worth at least 30s a head less in Anckland, aftor the train journey, than they were in the paddocks in Waikato. After some further discussion, Mr Henry Reynolds moved "That the country settlers present thank the Hamilton Borough Yol™Y 01 ™} 1 £?r? r the Proposed slaughtering facilities offered to them, and pledge themselves to support the undertaking by slaughtering their stock in Hamilton.'' Uptam Runciman seconded, the motion,

expressing the great pleasure he felt at weeing that a proposal which he had ho long advocated wai at last likely to be successful. The Maj or suggested that the meeting should appoint tt committee to ascertain the feeling of tho country and report. The council, as was only reasonable, required assurances of substantial support before they voted away so largo a sum of monoy as was namod. Mr Barugh said the whole scheme rested on the question of freight. If they could not get some substantial reduction in freight lfc tv? bo usele . sa to S° on witJl tn e matter. Mr Hudson said he thought the concession granted would be about 7s per ton of! the 31s Od now charged. Mr Barugh said that would not bo sufficient to warrant them in going on. Some discussion took place, the opinion being expressed that a committee should ba appointed to make enquiries into this and many otl er subjects. Mr ,T. K. McDonald moved, "That those present form a committee to promote the undertaking by enlisting tho co-operation of the settlers generally and the butchers in carrying out the schome, five to form a quorum ; the Mayor to bo convener." This was seconded by Mr John Fisher and carried. m. Th< L inoetinfir then went into committee. The ' Mayor, Capt. Steele, and Messrs E. B. Walker, H. Reynolds, Primrose, and 1* isher were appointed a aub-committee. After some other formal business, the meeting adjourned.