, 1888-03-29
"HALLES CENTRALES.'
ThE PLACE WHERE THE PARISH
ANS BUY THEIR FOOD.
An Enormous Market House with Acres
Under Govern Methods OF Buying and
seiIing--stirripg Scene at = O'Clock in
the Morning.

tne morning.
There are now twelve pavilions of iron
, and glass ut the Paris H8lles Centralca.
Each one seems TO he devoted to u differ
ent sort OF edibles, and yet the space thus
allotted under cover is little more than
half large enough for the City's needs.
The four largest payillons are those where
| fish, poultry, vegetables and dairy prod
uce are sold. AR the pavilions are well
ventilated, the stalls are conlmodious and
"down among the dead men, are base
ment cellars, where the stall renters arc
| permitted to stose such iuperishable
goods ny they hive been unable to dis.
pose OF In the course of the day.
The wagons bringing the meat from
slaughter honscs and poultry FROM trains
begin to arrive about II o'clock in the
evening, and they continue coming
throughout the night The employees lift
out the baskets ard arrange them along
| the sidewalks. In each basket is the car
cass Of Hu animal, either whole or cut up
! into quarters, and carefully wrapped up
in stout canvas: also Il label bearing the
name Of the sender, tho weight of the con-
| tents and u sort of bill of laling which IA
| handed tn market official who makes
| from it bis memoranda. Then a number
is placed on all the merchandise which
comes from ths same shipper. after which
the board of health Inspector makes his
examination, marks n V ON all meat that
| he considers fit for food and has the rest
removed To another place 10 be looked mt
more carefully later on. When it Is
| finally found unit to eat il Is coniiscated
| and either sent to the Jardin des Plantcs
| to be thrown to the wild animals, or il
totally destroyed.
In the meantime tho forts dc Ia halle
| or market portcrs, have commenced their
part Of the common work. Handling tho
| meat which has passed inspection with
large iron hooks, they carry 1t TO the pub
! lie weighing station. and when the weight
! of each piece mas been twice recorded,
| once 10y the clerk of the consgnce and
| once by tho city's employe, label is fas-
/ tened to it with "A galvanized iron pin, and
then the meat Ii hung mp in rows to be
sOld la erie, or ut public auction, to tho
retail dealers, and rs the pieces are sold
| the name Of the purchaser Is written On
! the other sidc of the label.
This is tho routine for carcasses and
\ quarters already prepared, but there is
other meat i'll large quunteics which has
| to undergo two operations known us the
I epluchage itlirnmnGl and the decoupagc.
! or cutting up This Ia doue by five men,
! and IL II difficult and sonnet ines dangerous
! work The decnupcurs wear sort of
! cap, to which q lighted candle is fixed;
I
! their work by, and it must be executed
with great rapldity IN the midst OF II crowd
! Of portcTs and other market hands There
! Hre, it Is true, Il fow gas lets here and
! there, but not enough of them to enable
| the inspectors and cutters to do their work
! properly. Why don't they burn more
gas? Well, because ii is known in Paris
that gas is u bad thing for meat and other
| food, and the less of gas there Is used
| ol,n tt,l In, Ia, nd
| Four o'clock is the hour when the vente
! u Ia criee begins. The din is APPALLING.
| Strong armed wenches men and boys are
I rushing about or pushing trucks bearing
hampers full TO the brim, and statesmen
| porched aiuft In small pulpits bawl their
! Offers in voices which sound like dismal
/ howls Under the ziuc rootings, while Gus
htoIners bid in the same strain. The buyers
! at this early hour are stallkeepers proprie-
tors Of restaurants and hotels, and caterers
/ TO hospitals ur asyluuls, These people, by
coming early, get their provisions much
cheaper than the public will do in the
course OF the day, though this is not true
of fish, which is subject to astonishing
fluctuations. The Wholesale selling ends
ut o'clock, and now cooks and poor wives
! make their appearance by thousands.
1t is u curious and an Instructive scene,
| ] assure YOU, Jhat ot the markets Mt an
early morning hour.
The street il 50 crowded with people
that wheeled vehicles cannot enter; but
beyond the church stand rows of cabs,
with their hCrses' heads facing the shops
on t!ic other side ut The little rue that runs
eloug dc front Of the ancient cdiiice.
Hcrr on the sidewalk stand hundreds OF
| biskc.s of fruit, grapes and whitish
brown things that on closer inspection
prove to b" mushrooms, There il IL wide
passage between the Two lines Of payil-
Ions. nN,. ut This early hour this passage is
that lovely that oven yo', good people Of
the golden coast, would Cry out: "Ie
gods Low beautiful. The colors of all
the rainbows that have arched them
selves over the earth since Noah went
yachting greet our eyes. IT. Is n paradise
Df rostS, CGngllaS. yloetS, prilnroses, OF
all the flowers In the world, at least IL
seems so. Farther On are things which
English cCplc Sall roots but which wc in
our superiority pronounce vegetables. Hum
drc,ls ana hundreds of rows or rcd carrots,
r. nu,:,y mnre rows Of white turnips;
rows three, OF four feet high, mind you,
AMI 80 sicillfuly piled that no vcsti9c OF
the gree;i stems can he seen, and yet TO
zach root ~ such an uppenduge, And the
cabbhl;ri and the CauliiloWcrsl and the
blsktts oi string beans and peas aud the
green stc'sS FOR salads! and the potatoes,
"Arrah. Ih,, spuds,f AS heard the gentle
mau--t,c may even now he one OF oitr ilrst
ctilcns for all know SAY once uEpD u
time IN Dublin.
Gt;ia further on are the fishes, on
N1cksi riatters, Ike round basket lids
with hHltlles on either side, turbot,
sktte, ,u;trkercl, sole, salmon, perch, etc,
IN ten, fifteen and twenty pairs At a time.
These iishwomen are not those of Billings
gare. but they will do. ! have 10 wish To
co,is into contest with muscular red
arms; and, phewi heaven knows they aIr
Just now strong enough tn knock John
sullivan himself out of time. Parislans
lilss i,rii, and consuiac yearly an average
Of ,'i? nearly 81 900 coo pounds thereof. -