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'Animals the Same as People'
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By
P. A. C. Brockington
rj,. pigs like looking at themselves in a polished .aluminium surface? Does this apply to sheep and cows? Can cattle bear the sight of their own faces ,only when they
have been attested?. . . "It's no laughing matter I can assure you," said the cattle haulier.. " Right there in Stratford market, they said, the sheep would take fright when they saw their reflections in the aluminium. Cattle are more educated than they' were, and more vain, too. And they live in the midst of transport noises like : the rest of us. A bit of drumming is • neither here nor there to them. Maybe horses are more touchy and they don't like a clattery ramp. '
"Does being attested make cattle snobs? Well, that's a new. one. But they'll all be attested around here soon, and to the south, too, so it'll he the
same difference. Except, of course, for the non-attested cattle farther north.
" Then, weshall have to wash the wagons out, and no more arguments. No change from one to the other without washing, you know. I'm lucky, I've got aluminium bodies. Cuts the time by at least a quarter and they're more hygienic. No trouble with urine in the wood and with the body putting on weight you can't take out.
"And no painting. That saves a packet, and they go on looking right. Though, mind you, the aluminium people might do better if they could stop this filming over on the outside. Inside it's kept polished by the animals.
"Barren .cow? They're rough meat arid mostly sent abroad. They've a long way to go and we've got to be careful. The railways are losing money • on long distance because of
their cut rates, but it's still better to use road wagons.
" Now, if the engine driver were responsible for his freight, it might be different. But how could he be? Animals are the same as people. They like to think there's someone who cares. _ "You. see all sorts of wagons in Stratford market. Practically all oilers they are, and now mostly 5-tonners and some 7-tortners with 18-ft. bodies. They're getting longer too and you see wagons with 24-ft. bodies, although that's too big for a lot of farms. I like these plastics roofs myself."
I asked whether anything could be said in favour of wood bodies. Were the local operators who prefer this type swayed by unreasonable prejudice? Did they make up arguments in favour of wood because they could not afford to buy a better product that would last longer?
"Cost is not the only thing, sir," my friend replied. "A good wood body keeps in condition better, and we make some of. our wagons ourselves, It's cheaper and there are all those small points on partitions and the like we can arrange as we want. A good glossy paint on the inside:is the best finish you can get, and we take a pride in it. Ten years or more the bodies last, and that's good enough.
"If aluminium lasts three times as long what good is it? Higher repair costs? If you ran a big fleet and could keep in a stock of aluminium, and had a man who could work with it, maybe it would be better than wood. But we can do a repair job pretty quick all the same.
"This partition business needs looking into. Nobody's got it right yet. Strong cattle need strong measures, and partitions just don't stand up. They twist and warp and bolts don't go in. Why can't we have decks that go up and down hydraulically?" How typical is Strat ford of markets throughout the country?
It is a small market, compared with Banbury and one or two others, but it attracts buyers from all over the industrial area, and in the last three years business has been improving. When it becomes part of the bigger " attested " area next year, it is expected that sales will increase and there will be more vehicles coming in. Stratford faces a problem of vehicle control that is typical of many markets. "Yes, we're luckier than some," observes the haulier. "There's plenty of room. But already there's a problem of organizing the wagons to save time. A lot depends these days, when a holdup means a lost trip, on having someone who directs the traffic."