The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-07-01
Fat and Lean Beef.

Ii is pretty evident that feeders and breed
ers are beginning To consider the demands of
the consumer, that in first-,lass butchers
meat there shall be more lean and less fat,
or, in other words. a maximum of tallow
shall give place To u fair proportion of ten
der and juicy meat The consumer who
now buys joint of firSt-rate ripe beef. mutt
ton or pork, pays for three pounds of fat and
bone To one pound pound Of lean. and the
fat being good for little than soap grease the
portion available for eating costs him three
prices. Ii j. worth our while perh;s,S. To
consider the changes which have taken
place i'm the character of butchers meat
within fifty years or 50, and how fat has
Usurped the place of lean.
Then If. when a steak or Joint was bought
the butcher Ventured tn remove a portion OF
the fat, the buyer protested, being DESTROYS
of getting a. much fat as possible, not only
because il scarce. but more because the
fat of those days, when cooked, could be
eaten with relish. But now the consumer in
si>ts that the dealer shall give him AZ little
fat possible, because lac has more OF il than
he knows what 10 10 with. since. When
cooked, il can not be eaten. The difference
between the quality of the fat Of fifty wears
ago and that of the present consists in this,
that formerly fat was made up of cell tissue.
the result of the then system or manner of
feeding a class OF animals i'm which the flesh
and muscles weretleveoped i'm a much larger
proportion than the fat and fatty TISSUES.
Now. the system nj feeding having been
radically changed on account OF the abund-
ance and cheapnc>s of corn, the entire ami
mai haS been changed. too. in its phy>iulOgi-
cal makeup and has become little more
than an animated frame on which Ia hang
maximum of fat. once a minimum of lean.
Take the prize fat steer, for example. and
note the six or seven inches of pure fat or
talOw covering his back and sides: note the
champion wether Of the same class with
blanket of four or five inches of suet over
his shoulders. and look AT the prize fat pig.
smothered under six or seven inches of lard
and though each may weigh enormously for
its age and race, the amount of eatable sub
stance in the dressed carcass Goes not much
exceed that obtained from the carcass of AN
animal, IN fairly good condition for slaugh-
ter. Of half the weight.
That j. Che aim seems Ia have been Ia pro-
duce fat only, with small regard tn the in
crease of lean: and this because il appears To
be understood that. ii an animal is fed high
for long time the result will be fat out of
ali proportion to lean. But the fact i, some
races or Glasses of cattle, sheep and hogs run
To lean and Others To fat; and, il having been
proved that when corn is abundant and
cheap fallow and corresponding weight is put
on cheaper than muscle or flesh breeds and
races of the latter characteristics have been
chosen To- multiply from i'm preference to- the
former. This the consumer appears To have
found out and i'm future will demand that
his beef, mutton and pork shall have a due
proportion of lean and fat, whether steak
chop. joint or roast.