The Jungle Book

Dear Lithuania

I would like to express my most sincere apologies for leaving you . I mistakenly believed that you had nothing more to offer me and that I could find my happiness in the arms of America . I understand the rejection you must feel , because I ‘m feeling the same rejection from my current lover , America . I settled in Chicago with Ona only to find that it would take me a long time to be able to afford to marry her . We worked hard , saved our money and were finally married and able [banner_entry_middle]

to start our lives together . Jobs were not easy to come by , not nearly as easy as it was to find poverty , severe hardships , frequent unemployment and few options to get myself out of this mess . Stop laughing . The least you can do is be sympathetic to my suffering

Like other immigrants , I wound up in Packingtown working at the stockyards . The stockyards are filthy and disgusting and the work is absolutely stomach-turning . I had no choice but to take the job . What could I do ? Ona and I were working on starting a family and as the man I must be able to support her . My first visit to the stockyards was horrific . As I passed by the government inspector , I was told that he was checking the hogs for tuberculosis . I thought , What an easy job that must be the inspector does not look worried or tired or the least bit stressed ‘ It took me a few minutes to realize this was because he wasn ‘t checking each and every hog . Even as I stood there , several hogs managed to get by without inspection , hogs that would later be given the seal of approval . Oh , my dear Lithuania . If those hogs have tuberculosis , they could spread it to every hog or pork product in the plant . From there , it will spread to the workers and to the town . A system needs to be put in place whereby the hogs are checked by a second inspector as well . But I ‘m being unrealistic the government inspector would be insulted at the idea that he is not capable of doing his job alone

You must think me a complete fool for leaving you . What have I earned here that was so much better than home , you ask ? I cannot even think of anything right now , I am too exhausted from a long day and hungry from a lack of food . My experience wasn ‘t nearly as bad as what Antanas experienced . He worked in a room where they prepared the beef for canning . All of the unused particles and chemicals would be swept on to the filthy floor and then disposed of . Instead of disposing of these parts which are now mixed in with the chemicals and the muck on the floor , the particles are removed and canned as well ! Is there no end to the deceit and treachery of the stockyards ? There is simply no way… [banner_entry_footer]