The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1889-12-11
USEFUL AFTER DEATH.
What Is Done with the Bodies of
Deceased Horses.
The Post-Mortem History Of an Old Nag
Its Bones Converted Into Fertilizers,
Its Hide Into Baseball Covers
and Its Hoofs Into Glue.

1t was a very melancholy-looking
horse, with consumptive aspect pre-
sumably engendered by long periods OF
semi-starvation and when it fell dead
suddenly in the shafts OF an ash wagon
opposite the Patent Office early yester-
day morning, says the Washington Star,
the colored man who drove the cart did
not evince any marked surprise. A po-
liceman who was passing stopped for a
moment to inspect the corpse and then
went into q shop on the corner to ring
I'D q telephone. Ten minutes few by
and man with busiuess-like air and
large wart on his nose made his way
through the little crowd that surround
cd the dead animal. The ash man he
addressed briefly in a whisper and pres
emily handed him five silver dollars.
After eyeing the money for few seconds
with the air of one consoled for mis-
fortune the ash man put 1t in his pocket
and walked off, probably to borrow an
other horse for the purpose of dragging
his wagon home. AS the crowd broke
up philanthropic pedestrian remarked,
with q sigh, to the person with wart
on his nose that the poor beast was to
be congratulated upon having finished
his career of usefulness in this world.
The man with the wart grinned, and re-
piled that the unfortunate creatures
usefulness, far from being finished, had
only begun.
The philanthropio citizen did not un-
dcrstand the meaning Of this response,
but he would have comprehended it bet
ter II he had waited minute or 30
more, at the end Of which heavy dray
was driven up alongside the pavement
and two men with an inclined plane of
boards and rope tackle pulled the dead
horse upon the vehicle and drove away
with 1t. The bystanders noticed that
the dray was marked In big letters with
the name OF such-and-such firm, imam
ufacturers of superior fertilizers"
This, then, was to be the destiny Of
the deceased quadruped. Unlike the
egg that chirps at breakfast, 1t had not
survived the period Of its usefulness. 1t
would live again in the fruits and
flowers and waving grain, to which It
might contribute the elements Of
growth.
After awhile the dray came TO q stop
in front of an ugly-looking building on
the Potomac bank at the other end Of
Georgetown. The men did not hold
their noses, but that was because they
were used TO the very unpleasant smells
which thicken the atmosphere OF the To-
cality. The carcass was unloaded, and,
having been conveyed into tho building,
was hoisted TO the second floor. There
anexpert operator set TO work upon 1t
with keen knife and quickly removed
the entire skin, the portion covering
the head and tail included. The
hayed animal was then cut up into
six parts, which were thrown into q
big iron kettle with o steam jacket
and boiled four hours. At the end
of this time tho big bones, loosened
from the flesh by cooking, were sep
arated from the mass OF meat with rakes
for subsequent grinding up into bone
fertilizer, which is very expensive, but
contains elements that restore the
nutritive power TO the soil in wonder
ful manner. For whereas fertilizers
made Of flesh produce good effect
that is merely temporary, the ground
bone supplies the appetite OF the hungry
loam in a way that really lasts.
Nitrogen, carbon and lime, which It SO
largely contains, are marvellous growth.
producers.
But, as was about 10 be said, the flesh
and little bones, after the big bones had
been taken out, were put under power.
full press, big enough to. accommodate
half ton, and squeezed until nearly
every particle OF water and grease has
been forced out Of the tissue. Then
The mass was placed in o steam drier
with two jackets, between which steam
vas continually flowing around, and
after awhile II came out dry as o chip.
Not bit OF grease or moisture, in
which the elements Of decomposition
IRE propagated, remained, and the
residue, after being ground up fine in
Iort OF mill, resembled Lone Jack tobac-
o more than any thing else. II had no
'fensive smell, and the reporter was in
ormed that 1t would last indefinitely
Without exhibiting sign OF decay or
hange. In this form, put np in bags, IL
vas ready for the farmer-an excellent
ertilizer, though by no means equal TO
round bone. 1t Is much cheaper, how
yer.
And now, presumably, you are under
he impression that you know all about
he postmortem history Of horse. BY
10 means. You have not yet been told
hat his skin goes 10 Philadelphia or
sew York and is made into baseball
overs. Nothing 30 tough as horse-hide,
nd, therefore, 30 well adapted TO that
'urpose, has yet been discovered. The
Iair Of the name and tail is the best pos
ible material for o curled-hair mat
ress. The hoofs are ground up into the
nest gardeners fertilizer known, and
he most costly Of all fertilizers, owing
o the difficulty Of grinding them. The
esult is called 'hoof meal" and its
alue from the gardeners point OF view
largely owing TO the presence in II Of
great percentage Of ammonia. Very
kelly, however, the hoofs may be util-
,ed In the manufacture OF an excellent
uality Of glue, or II may be that the
hemist will adapt them to the various
Sos OF his own, among others TO the
'aking of that exquisite color Of Per-
Ian blue. Besides, the hair may be
sed for hair-cloth and fsh-lines, and
he bones for animal charcoal and but
,ns. i
Whlroa ~ = 0&ulus