The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-03-19

aries IN georgia.
a cruel nan is the moancst creature
that God ever made. Tho story of the
inquisition with it's racks and wheels
and tires and hooks is the most awful
story that was ever written. When !
was boy read Fox's ''Bools Of Mar.
tyrs,' and haven't recovered from it
yet. The worst two words in tho Eng
lish language are torture and torment,
and they both como from the same
Latin word, that means TO twist, to
turn, to scrow down, to put in agony.
Torture is a temporary eXpcdient and
has an occasional rest, but torment
goes on and on until death comes to re-
liovo the sufferer. l wasent ruminat-
ing about the torture OF humankind,
but havo just read about how they
make pats do fOis gras" and pcpsin,
and it made mo sick. 1t distressed my
wife and daughters, and though these
things concern only geese and pigs
they shall not come into our house.
Henry Bergh is dead, but where is the
Society for tho Prevention OF Cruelty
to Animals? Where is the spirit Of
Uncle Toby, who wouldent kill fly,
but put him out Of the window, and
said: Nov go, you little pest; the
world is big enough for you and me ?"
Where is the spirit of Cowpcr, who
says 81 woulC not enter upon my list
Of friends tho man who needIossly scts
foot upoS IL worm ?" There is no more
beautiful trait in human character
than mercy. Mercy TO man and beast
and bird and insect. Shakespeare says
that Mercy is nobility's true badge" :"
[ used to hunt squirrels and rabbits and
birds and felt proud when | brought
home good lot Of game, but | know
now that it was all wrong. What right
had | to kill the happy, innocent crca-
lures that God had made?
But just to read what is going on at
Stras burg in the production OF pate dc
fois gras IS enough to h0rrify anybody.
peasant thcro is wealthy, according
to his number Of geese and their livcrs
are prepared for the appctitcs Of the
rich by torture and torment OF the most
exquisite kind. Before ever " young
goose has laid an egg its feet arc nailed
by the legs to q plank and the plank
set before a fire. Its eyes arc burned
out and there the poor blr>ls stays and
stcams for six months until its liver is
distcndcd and the diseased fat cnlargcs
from 40 TO 80 per cent. The children
Of the peasants ram down food in lis
up TO the guzz!o, and they seem to cn-
joy the fun Of listening to the crouk-
ings OF pain that the poor bird makes.
Not drop OF water is allowed TO slnllc
its burning thirst and this treatmcnt
goes on for weeks and months until the
liver is all right-(or the cpicurcs and
gourmands, who funcy this food at III
| and st can. All that | want to know
| about man now is whether he cats
goose liver or not. These tortured
| tormented, harmless, safer ing birds
! arc raised by the tens Of thousands al
Strasburg. 1t is the great industry and
supports the major I'art of the populn-
tion. Their pate dc fois gras is export
cd TO this country and other civilized
countries that claim q Christian civil
izatiOn. Now although Henry Berg h
is dead, why can we not limit this bus
mess to some extent by putting an en-
bargo upon its importation to this
country? Are we q nation OF brul, $
and barbarians? [ reckon we are, for
il seems that tho production OF pcpsin
is nearly as cruel, and now pcpsin is
the most popular remedy for indiges-
ton. Indigestion is the great!nationaI
maludy and popsin is supposed to be II
remedy for it.. It's production comes
from Chicago. Young healthy pigs
arc placed in separate stalls and fed
literally until they arc fat and round
and tho gastric juice in full vigor. All
of Il sudden tho feeding is stopped aud
starvation is the next step in order.
This goes on for q week until tho pig
is not only ravcnous, but desperately
rabid for something to cat. The gas
trio juices from every part of the ami
mai flow to tho stomach in search OF
something to feed upon. Then tho last
process comes, which is to place just
outside the stall IL pan OF hot, stcaming
potato mash, just near enough for the
pig to smell and get the aggravating
odor, but not near enough to eat and
this stimulates the desire OF the poor
hungry animal and causes ovcry vein
and tissue to send it's hungry juices 10
the stomach in anticipation Of feast.
| The pig gets the OdOr and nothing
more and Just then the knife Is thrust
into its heart and the stomach quickly
opened and the gastric juice taken out
and put into cans and bottled for the in
valids who have been gorging them
selves with pate dc fois gras, or for
! tho sickly infants whose milk docs not
agree with them.
| What is the world coming to? Is
such cruelty the price Of human life ?
| 1t did not use to be. Geese arc not Of
| COnSC uCnco, DuL ~ REnucr newer naS
but one mate and will stand by her
nest and guard it while she sits on her
eggs, and when she leaves them for
| food be win escort her to the grass and
escort her book with ~ dignity that is
! impressive. | have great respect for
! geese.
But just now we arc talking about war
as though it were II sport, IL iro!lc and
the killing off Of Il low Thousand people
and leaving mothers and wives bcrcav-
| ed and helpless was Of little consc-
qucncc. We do not even express the
! pity that StOncwall Jackson felt when
just before the battle he prayed and
said, "Lord hell their souia-nOT give
! thcm"--wcll, that was StOncwalIs way.
! There ere near. " Il million pensioners
new, and we don't want any more.
! There arc vacant chairs enough in our
households. There arc three in ours,
and nobody ever thinks OF them save
! the kindred to whom thcy were dear.
! J Thought VIC were to have arbitration
about these national disturbances.
There arc but three classes Of people
who want war, and they arc all Il heart
less set. These are the professional
soldiers the West Pointers and regu-
lars, who's" profession is TO fight, aud
! who seek plOrV 81 nd DrDi.Dt ION rp1arU-