Middletown transcript., 1888-11-08
SOME THINGS ABOUT LARD.

.
What ever may have been th'
real cause for forbidding tht
use of pork among the ancien
Hebrews, the experience Of mod
ern times seems to prove that i
was not without wisdom. Civiliza
tion has excluded the flesh of carniv
orous animals from the list of permis.
sible food, and the hog is more nearly
carnivoreus animal whose flesh ii
put on our tables would partake undel
any circumstances.
The uncleanly habits of the hog
have become by-word, and it is nj
doubt this fact, together with his greal
liability to many diseases, which hal
caused the flesh of swine to be, in al
ages, so widely regarded with disgust
and in this day of wholesale slaughter
of animals and of supreme desire OF
the part Of packers to make the most
of hogs carcass, without regard te
the health or the life of the consumer
there is no reason why the old-timt
hostility should not be renewed. The
peril that is called to mind by tht
word "trichin@" is one that is always
with us, and the fatal character o.
this disease has caused it to be made
a subject of special scientific study
but when the many lesser disorders
produced by the use of diseased hog
and hog products have been as full!
investigated and traced to their rea
source, the danger that turks II
swine's flesh will be more thoroughly
appreciated.
STARTLING !
The testimony recently taken before
the Committee on Agriculture Of tht
house of Representatives, in respect
to the manufacture of lard has served
to point out anew and to emphasize
the perils of hogs lard. The facts
were developed that many diseased
animals are constantly slaughtered
and converted-head, feet and entrails
Into so-called pure lard. The better
parts of the fats Of the hog-thost
which were once used in the manufac'
ture of leaf lard-are now sold to the
makers of butterine and bogus butter
and the grease extracted from the
head, feet and entrails, which were
formerly rendered separately, is now
frequently used in hogs lard. A
short time ago what was known as
g gut lard'' was used only for SOAP
grease, but this now goes into what is
sold as prime article of lard. The
uncleanly and disgusting methods OF
many leading manufacturers is shown
by a narrative of details that may
properly be called sickening.
"WHoLE Hoe OR NONE "a
The testimony Of former employees
of well known lard maker shows that
those portions of the hogs carcass
which were formerly reserved for lard.
oil and soap-grease now 60 into the
tanks and are converted into lard, and
the details as to entrails and other FL
thy parts are not altogether reassuring
to a cleanly housewife. With this
man it is literally whole hog or
none," and it was stated that some
times even the bristles were not entire
ly removed from the heads. but went
into the tanks with the rest. No sys-
tenn of inspection of live hogs exists
outside Of interested parties. Hogs
are inspected after being killed. Hogs
with the worst diseases are used as
freely as any other (outside of large
packing centres where officials claim and
render into grease hogs dying in cars. J
There is nothing to prevent putting
the hog who dies a natural death into
the lard tank. Even after car inspec-
tion, when a hog dies of disease or
hog cholera, in the house of the pack
er. where sometimes thousands accu-
mulate and die, there is nothing to
prevent the rendering Of this hog into
lard. Hog cholera abounds, and the
moment a drove gets sick, they are
shipped and killed promptly to prevent
their dying naturally, and are rendered
into lard.
Afidavits are on file, and can be pro-
duced by the hundred, to show that
hogs, dying from cholera, and other
diseases, are time and again thrown
whole into the lard tank, and this
criminal product sold to the public as
Pure Leaf Lard.
An ex-pork packer of st. Louis, who
was forty years in the business, stated
that during a recent examination of
stock yards and packing-houses, he
found that great many diseased hogs,
suffering from cholera, were slaughter.
ed.
CAN THE HOG MEN AFFORD TO
TALK ABOUT ADULTERATIoN
1t seems that this investigation was
started by the makers of alleged
&c pure" lard in order to induce Con-
gress to put tax upon what is called
sc refined lard, ,"-that is lard contain
ing percentage of stearine and cot
oil-so that they might sell
The inferior article for more money,
but the testimony would seem to
show the less hog there is in lard the
better and more wholesome the article.
This is case in which an adulterant
IS less Objectionable than the SUBJ
stance it adulterates.
THE DANGER OF EATING Hoes
LARD.
Many housekeepers have alrea dy
placed lard upon the list of articles
which are not at all to be admitted to
,he kitchen. The toothsome dough-
nut can be produced to perfection
VithOot the usa of tha fat of tha HOG