Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-06-27
NONE BUT HEALTHY HOGS,
One Hundred Microscopes Trained Upon
Chicago Porkers.

One Hundred Microscopes Trained Upon
Chicago POrkers.
sNO MORE TRICHINE WILL TAKE
~ passage abroad in the American hog"
said Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Willitts
to STAR reporter. From now on for an in
definite period every porker that leaves Chi
cago for foreign market will be subjected to
special and particular examination. Already
in that city 100 microscopes are trained upon
the product of the slaughter houses with such
scientific accuracy that no disease germ can
possibly escape unnoticed. An expert corps
OF operators is distributed among the abattoirs,
where. in the very midst of gore and mutila-
ton, these sharp-sighted persons inspect the
inward parts of the animals as they are killed.
"As quickly as Mr.. Pig has been dispatched
by the deft butchers knife the microscopic
runs sort of gauge into its still warm and
bleeding carcass, Just as the butter man does to
try sample from new tub. The instrument
Is ploughed into the diaphragm, because that is
the part which, for some reason not altogether
understood, is first entered by the trichina
Having thus secured bit Of the beast the ex-
pert cuts very thin slice off it with knife
made for the purpose and places the
slice upon glass microscope slide. This he
puts under his instrument, and it is the work
of but a moment to determine whether any
diseased germs are present in it or not. When
the specimen was taken it was numbered and
number corresponding was attached to the
hog it came from So when the sample is
found to be all right the porker is tagged with
certlhcate In due form guaranteeing that the
creature is entirely healthy and suitable for
human consumption. Not pig is permitted
to be shipped for foreign parts without this
guarantee attached to it. This department is
determined that the prejudice at present ex-
listing In some countries abroad against Ameri-
meats No
pean case Of trichiniasis shall in future be
traceable to pork from the United States if we
can help it. This method of inspection is to be
adopted in other cities very soon, and expect
that before long LOCO microscopes will be en-
ployed in the work all over the country"
Irichln@ are very minute worms, measuring
when fully grown not more than one-sixteenth
of an inch in length. They do not attain de-
velopment in the body Of the hog, which serves
as what is called an intermediate host" Upon
securing a Judgment in the porcine corpus the
worms become encysted in the muscular tissue
SO as to do no harm. But when this flesh is
eaten by man without being sufficiently cooked
to destroy the animals the cysts envelopinR
them are dissolved by the gastric juices and
the worms make their way through the mus
cles, causing the most intense agony and fire.
quently death. While in the human body which
is thus the final host or entertainer of the
creatures, they lay eggs which pass out with the
discharges. Roofing about another pig con-
sumes some OF these eggs, which are sub
sequently Matched, thus completing the life
cycle of the trichin@. A similar parasitic worm
attacks the cat, mouse eaten by the pussy
being the intermediate host in this case.
Likewise it is with the trout OF certain lakes in
the Yellowstone Park, the meat of which is SO
nlled with worms as to be worthless Pelicans
eat the fish, the worm eggs in the fish are
Matched In the birds bodies and the parasites
thus brought forth, being deposited in the
water with the excrement of the fowls, are
eaten by the fish, thus completing the life cycle
intermediate hosts in this instance, there
would be no worms in the Yellowstone trout
and for that reason it has been suggested that
it would be well to destroy the birds, Though
they are so picturesque that it would be a pity