The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1855-09-27
Horses and Rats in Paris.

the Times gives an interesting account Of
the manner in which the Partisan horses
and rats are disposed of. He says:
Four hundred horses die or are killed
in Paris in one week. There is comm on
pound surrounded BY stone wall, cover
ing some ten acres. According to some
municipal regulations (there is an "ordi-
nance" for everything in Paris) all dead
carcasses except human bodies, must be
brought to this general receptacle. The
carcass of horse is valuable for the bone,
the hide and the hair, to say nothing of
the flesh, much priced, when fresh, in
certain sausage manufactures. But should
you wait till the horse has actually, shut
fed of his hairy coil, you might miss a
bargain-another of the trade precedes
and purchases. Hence it is important to
buy the horse, as dead horse, before be
is dead. 1t is a regular business in Par
is. You can tell these agents for the
purchase of dead horse at a glance; the
dress is that of an English groom, save
vignette on the visor of the cap, represent
ing dead horses head and cross bones;
memorandum book, pencil, stamp,
and piece of caustic complete the ac-
coutrements. With scrutinizing eye he
travels the thoroughfares of Paris;
should horse 90 lame, break leg or
neck, should he show any symptoms of
distress-in word, anywhere or in any
way evince signs of the many ills to which
horse-fesh is heir, Immediately is an offer
made for the animal, deliverable when
really dead. The bargain concluded, the
"signalement" OF the horse and owner is
carefully recorded. and a private mark is
stamped on the inside of the foreleg with
the caustic; the horse goes, perhaps, re-
joicing on his way for weeks, perhaps
months, only to be met with and identi-
fed after death at the public graveyard
for horses. Now, except in cases of fresh
specimens, as mentioned above, the first
operation on a dead horse is to take off
the skin; then the flesh, to get at the bones.
The skinning process is easy, and per-
formed with a dexterity and rapidity tru-
ly astonishing.
| have seen in the enclosure spoken of,
at one time, over one hundred horses
skinned or being put through that pro-
cess. The next point is to divest the
bones of adhesive and often putrid flesh;
bones are valued in proportion as they
are clear, neat and free from other mat
ter. To take off the flesh by hand is a
difficult and tedious operation. An in
yenious Frenchman solved the difficulty. !
He noticed that rats are very fond of horse
flesh; he advised the authorities to colon
re the dead horse pound with these ami /
mails; the catacombs of Paris furnished /
hem by thousands. 1t was done, and
now a-days q dead horses carcass, put in |
over night, is nothing but neat and |
skeleton in the morning. The /
saving to bone dealers from the
and gnawing propensity of the
at family is, am told, very considera-
dc.
Our Yankee Frenchman did not, how
'ver, stop there. 1t was natural to sup
,ose that rats, so well fed and provided
or, would rapidly increase and multiply;
renee the necessity ofregulating the mat
er. Every three months grand " bat
ue" is made upon the aforesaid colony of
ats, and all caught above ground die the
eath of rats The manner of doing this
unused me. Horizontal and cylindrical
oles are bored all around, in aud at the
cot of the enclosing walls-the depth and
iamete- being respectively the length
nd thickness of the rats body. Upon /
he morning of the "battue" men armed
nth tin pans, kettles, Sc. rush in at the
eep of day and "charivari" the poor rats,
Tho, frightened to death, poke their heads
1to the first opening. OF course, all
hose in the wall holes have tails sticking
ut. The rat collector, with bag over
is left shoulder, now makes tour of the !
aud the scientific and rapid |
,anner with which the rats are seized by
ne tail and safely (both to rats and ope- I
ator) transferred to the bag, challenges {
dmiration. 1t even surpasses the "Chif-
,nnier's' rag picking. Perhaps you Wish |