Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1895-08-23
THE OREGON HORSE ARATTOlR

from the bltcOelS' trHItllt.
We have noted the establishment Of an
abattoir in Oregon for the purpose of
working up the surplus range horses
into understandable products. A press
dispatch of recent date thus announces
the beginning of the work at this pack
ing house:
"The abattoir of the Western Packing
and Fertiliziug Co., located at Linnton.
twenty-five miles below Portland on the
Oregon side of the Columbia, is now in
full blast. just at present only the
hams will be picked for export. No
canning of the meat will be attempted
for no plant for this purpose has yet been
erected. The buildings of the abattOir
are roomy and fitted up with every neces-
sary and convenient appliance for the
business to be carried ON. On the
ground floor are large wooden tanks for
steaming the fat out of the meat; a num-
| Der of smaller tanks of galvanized iron q;
| two large vertical digesters or retOrts !;
press for pressing the oil out of the
meat; steam-heated kiln for drying the
bones a bone-cracker, which much re-
sembles a rock-crusher; a disintegratOr,
or machine for grinding the refuse into
"A fertilizer, and boilers and engines.
( The flesh of the horse is darker than
/ that of good beef. There is very little
kidney fat and the tat brought out is of "A
yellow color. Tie gentlemen constitu-
ting the Western Packing and Fertilizing
Co. are b. Kinsmen. a well-knOwn
stockman of Eastern Oregon, and NJ.
Sichel and Ben Selling, capitalists of
Portland. Since publicity was first
given to their projected enterprise these
gentlemen have been flooded with letters
of inquiry asking all kinds of informa-
ton regarding the killing of horses, the
srle of horse meat, etc. 70 none has an
answer been sent, the gentlemen pre-
ferring to guard the information gained
only after much trouble and expense
At the prices which range horses are
now bringing it is probable that profit
could be made by simply converting
them into fertilizer, but the "hams''
which this company is now pickliag will
find ready and doubtless remunerative
market in France and Belgium. Some
of them may yet be eaten on this side
the water. On this subject it is refresh
ing to hear sensible utterance from a
daily paper. Commenting on the press
dispatch we have quoted the St. Paul
Pioneer Press has the following intelli-
gent word;
"When wheat was so cheap that our
farmers did not know what else TO do
with it they fed it to their hogs and re-
allied far greater profit on it than by
selling the raw grain. Horses in their
turn have become so cheap, especially
those of the poorer breeds that their
owners have not known what to do with
them until new use was found for them
in Oregon, or at least what is "A new use
for them in America. They are slaugh-
tering them out there for food. And
this is a good use TO put them to. The
enteTprising Oregon packing company
which has found this new method OF
utilizing them has inaugurated line OF
industry in this country which if gener-
ally followed will greatly widen the
market for horses. There is no reason
why horse meat should not be a staple
article of food in this country, as it is in
Paris and other European cities. Ii is a
good meat, so it is alleged, palatable
and being sold at cheaper prices thar
beef, is a common article of food among
those who find 1t necessary to practice
close economy in their household eX
penses. SavoTy roasts and steaks anC
stews of horse meat regale the custo
mers of many Partisan restaurant
Horses are not raised in France especial
ly to be slaughtered, but the multitude
of disabled animals which are broker
down in the enormous traffic of the
cities sulfices for pretty good supply OF
horse meat in that country. In thi:
country no such use has been made OF
horselesh, because of a popular prejudice
against it as food, which seems to have
no other foundation than that it has moi
been tried. But If it should come into
wide use the horse problem will be
solved, The surplus horses of inferior
breeds will go to the slaughter-house
while the fine draft horses and roadster,
and the animals of good blood will re
main to do the work which will still be
left for horses to do
A little sound teaching of this charac
ter will help eradicate the unreasonlne