The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-07-03
KILLING FOR KOSHER MEAT.
The shaughter-House Methods of Ortho-
dox OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES of the Butcher.
New York Post.)

ager of an east side slaughter house.
Eyes, we reserve from fifteen to eighteen
hundred head of cattle d week for kosher
meat, although about 10 per cent of that
number only prove available. The rest
are condemned, not SO much because they
fail to meet certain physiological require
ments, as because some one of the five
rules that make the Shechitah unlawful
have been transgressed in the killing
"Come up to one of our refrigerated
compartments, he added, land I will
Ehow you supply of chuoks. A chuck
is the forequarter of the steer, the only
part that is lawfully used by. the orthodox
Jew. The fifth rib is the dividing line.
The porterhouse steaks, flets, tenderloin,
and all of the hindquarter, so much
priced by the Gentiles, are never eaten by
the Israelites. The forequarter is strictly
kosher, and really contains the most nu
tritious life sustaining elements of the
animal. The meat OF the forequarter re-
quires long and skilful cooking to make
Il at its best but when properly prepared
i is incomparabfy finer than the cuts and
i4ints usually thought SO much of, and
th@ sell for a far higher price"
= Admitted to the big refrigerator floor,
the visitor is surprised that anything as
prosaic as dressed beef can be made into
so pleasing picture. The compartment
is SO cold, So degrees, that you have to
put-ea,a wrapIto stand the change of tenn
perature, but the rows of regularly hung
sides stretching off in succession down
the long enclosure, with barely walking
room between them, are sight to see.
There are hundred great halves of ami
mails hanging neck downward. each from
its own hook, suspended with such order
IL precision that scarcely variation of
outline appears.
''This is kosher,' says the manager.
pausing before specimen. "Isn't that
II beautyF The fat shows up like marble,
and the pink meat is of clear and whole
some tone. See, here is the tag" point
ing to label attached to the forequarter
by wire; ..e
the date of the killing and the fact that
the Shechitah in the case of this bullock
was lawful. The signature is that of DR..
Kline, chief assistant of Rabbi Joseph,
who is the authority for Jewish law in
this respect for the whole United States
Rabbi Joseph is an invalid now, but he
has efficient deputies"
Each hanging beef around this kosher
specimen had tags and labels signifying
the lot it belonged to, the inspection Of
government officials, the mark of the
butcher whose shop it Is destined for; but
this kosher label is unique and appended
only to the chosen few. 'We select only
says the manager. "We get half a cent
pound more for the chucks, and the
prime headquarters of the Shechitah-
slaughtered animals bring us a good
price The steers reserved for kosher
chucks that prove to be unlawful ac
cording to religious tenets, are of excel
lent quality Of meat, the meat being
called 'terepha.' Terepha may be excel
lent, but such flesh is not for the Israelite
to partake of. We do not make much
money on our kosher meat, but the de-
mand for it must be supplied, and as the
largest, finest roasts and cuts are always
wanted by the GENTLE butcher, and those
three-rib roasts, weighing fifteen pounds
or so, have to be cut off large heavy ami
mails, the two demands work in together.
The kosher meat would bring us in more
but for the fact that it only is used from
those portions generally considered infer
ior and selling in the ordinary market for
less. Another thing, no matter how fine
or in what good condition kosher chuck
may be, if the animal has been killed
over seventy two hoursii is unstable as
kosher, and has to go at the usual price,
to people who don't care whether it was
killed by one method or another"
The big rough walled enclosure where
the actual process of killing goes forward
the sound of scrambling hoofs behind
the heavy barred partition, telling of the
tussle that inevitably ensues when any
powerful creature gives up it's life. From
under the bottom of this partitioned off
apartment ooZes a never ceasing flow of
rounding floor. "They are killing kosher
meat this morning." explains the man
ager. "There is our Socket. He has
been here seven years. He is q learned
man. The, Rabbi there, on the bench, is
also q scholar. See him examine the
knife
The Rabbi looks like scholar. He
is spare and pale, with specialized eyes
and a black skull cap pushed back from
his forehead. He runs his finger critical
1y over the broad, shining blade of the
Shochet's knife. If it is satisfactory, he
returns it to the Shochet, who withdraws
into the boarded enclosure where his skill
full ane religious act must be performed
There are fresh scrambl1ng and tussllng
behind those boards. Another steer dies.
The Shochet again brings his blade to
the Rabbi for inspection, but this time it
must be sharpened, so another cleaning
cimeter is drought Ito him. Far more
archaic and Oriental looking is the long
bearded Jew of great stature, but of deli
cate touch and perception, who stands at
the long table examining into the condi-
ton Of the Slaughtered animals. He is
removing q tissue from the suspected
lungs. He leads his long fingers repeated
Iy. over the membrane and finally dislodg-
es it. Then he examines the under part
by pouring warm water on it to find out
if hole has been made in the lung by
the separation of the tissue from it, If a
hole has been made, the meat of that ami
NAL will be 'terepha,' and not kosher -
The warm water leaks through, the ami
NAL has had at some tim Inflammation
of the lungs and is condemned. The
Shochet performed his functions carefully
and correctly; the steer was apparently
in splendid condition, but Israelites may
not eat of its flesh.
eff in the act of killing, the Shochet
separated the windpipe or gullet by press
ing on them with the knife, or if he killed
with knife that has a notch, or if he
put the knife underneath the windpipe
or gullet, or if he tore loose the windpipe
or the gullet, or if the Shochet's hands