The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1895-04-11
HORSEMEAT AS FOOD
Suggestion by an American
Consul in Germany.
OPENING TO AMERICAN PACKERS

The Consumption of Horsefiesh in the
Large Cities in Germany Almost as
Great as That of Beef and Mutton,
and Continually Growing.
WASHINGTON, April Zone of the
most striking novelties in the recent
consular mail received at the state de-
partment is the deliberate recommends
ton of United States consul that
American packers should turn their at
tention to shipping horsefesh to Ger
many.
I'm view of the prohibition of Ger
man markets to American cattle, there
is another direction toward which Amer
lean packers might well turn their at
tention. That is the preparation and
sale of horsemeat."
This is the opening paragraph of a re-
port just received from Consul Edward
w. S. Tingle at Brunswick, Germany.
Mr.. Jingle adds:
"While exact statistics on the con-
sumption of horsehesh are difficult to
obtain it seems almost as great as that
of beef and mutton in the large cities of
Germany. In smaller cities, where
there is some prejudice against horse
meat, the consumption is about one
third of that of beef, but in those places
the use of horsemeat is growing daily.
Its consumers are exclusively of the
poorer classes, but they comprise nine
tenths of the consumers of the country.
Beef and other frst-class meats cost
from Is cents to rs cents per pound in
Germany, and are out of the reach of
the average workingman, who receives
rs cents or 81 per day."
The demand for hOrsemeat in Ger
many has grown to such an extent that
it is beginning to be difficult to supply
it, and this is where the opportunity for
American packers comes in, according
to Mr.. Jingle. Formerly the German
butcher had little difficulty in procuring
for slaughter horses which were either
worn out or in jured so as to be worth
less, but the supply of this class of ami
mails is about exhausted, and horses for
butchering now cost from $45 to $50,
where formerly they could be had for
from S. to $40. The consequence is that
lust as people become attached to horse
meat, the butchers find they must raise
their prices. Mr.. Jingle adds:
"Horses can he raised in the United
States much cheaper than cattle. They
can be slaughtered by any of the Ameri-
can packing houses as easily as cattle
and they can be shipped alive across
the sea much more easily than cattle,
and can be sold either on the hoof or
dressed at price certainly greater than
seven cents per pound. The meat is
consumed in Germany in both sailed
and smoked state. With the astonish
inglv rapid disuse of horses in America
their raising, especially in the West, is
far from being the profitable industry it
has been. The ranchman, however, can
make the raising of horses for food prof.
liable. Why should he not do it? The
subject is of two-fold interest to the
American packer, whose beef and beef
products are now excluded from the
German market, and to the horse raiser,
whose invested capital brings him In
very unsatisfactory returns. The preJu-
dice against eating horsemeat is so great
in our own country that there will prop
ably never be demand for meat OF this
kind, but there is no reason why Amerl-
can packers and ranchmen should not
take advantage of the existence OF dill
ferent state of things in other countries
to found what Can be made very prot
liable industry and extensive export
trade -