The evening times., 1897-04-02
HEBREW RITES IN COURT.
Lawsuit Invslvipg Jewish Methods
of Killing Cattle.

of Killing Cattle.
A case which viii be of great interest
TO Hebrews in this city and throughout
the United States came up for trial in the
Baltimore city court today. 1t involves
the Jewish methed of slaughtering cat
tie and the rites incident thereto, and is
said to be the second instance on record
where this matter has been brought into
the courts. A number of rabbis have been
Mosaic rites and regulations as to what
Kosher means, what is '.schochet," ;"
or killer, appointed by the chief rabbi,
and what are his duties
Some time in 1886 the suit was brought
by a ''Schochet'' against a Jewish butcher
for breach OF contract. The claim is for
$3.50 damages. The plaintiff alleges in
his declaration that he entered an agree
Inent with the defendant TO Kill (schecu
cattle for him for period of three months,
and that he was to receive twenty-five
cents head for each head of cattle that he
killed.
The ''Schochet" had killed four head
OF cattle, it is alleged, of which two were
Kosher" or clean, and two were Tire
pha,' or uDclean. The orthodox rabbis
learned of this and Immediately notified
the butcher that he must not let the man
do any more killing, as he was utterly in
competent, and that if he continued to
keep him in his employ as a '-Schochet"
tney would notify all their co-religioDists
not TO buy any meat from him, as his meat
was not * osher''
From the Hebrew point of view, the
case and the question are of great inn
portance The knife the ''Schochel' car
RES is u cleaning blade of'razor-like edge,
rounded at the end. III is known as the
''Cholof," the word signifying changing
from life to DEATH 1t is absolutely nee
essary for the ''Schochet' TO see that the
knife IS kept in perfect condi ton, and
tnat it never gets notched, as the throats
of the animals he kills must be cut clear
through cleaniy at one single sweep, and
the flesh not torn at a single point The
animal is strung up by its mind legs The
''Schocheti steps directly behind the
great head, and by quick, sudden move
ment in one cut Sc vers the windpipe.
The carcass is then hung up, ahd The
''Schochet' plunges his right hand and arm
down into tie opening OF the chest to de
ternIine the condition of the lungs and the
heart. So eX pert are these men that they
can at once detect almost any pleural or
cardiac disease by the way the slaugh-
tered animals internal organs and their
surroundings feel to their fingers. The
'SchoChet" examines the stomach, liver
and the other organs This and nothing
more than this, is the Significance of what
are known as the Jewish killing rites
Any flesh that passes this examination
becomes Kosher" meat That which Is
not marked Kosher may he quite as
good but it has not the guarantee. Many
Christian families regularly buy Kosher
meat, simply because they know that il
is thoroughly healthful, and that they can
be sure OF it, for only Kosher meat is
permitted to be used by orthodox Jews
When cattle are killed in the slaughter
houses in the Jewish way by the 'SchO-
chet,' a seal stating the name OF the
killer and the date OF the killing, is put
upon each carcass.
To most people the word Kosher" ap-
plies to some solemn religious ceremony of
slaughterng. As amatterof fact Kosher
means simply clean, its opposite, ''Trepba,"
meaning unclean, condemned or forbidden
food. One curious thing is that the Jews
now kill precisely the way they did in
the days of Moses, and it is claimed that
their slaughtering is the most thoroughly
scientific that the world has ever seen.
There are two principles observed in
Jewish slaughtering. One S to cut so
that the animal dies instantly and that
the blood runs out Immediately and has
no chance to clot or coagulate. The other
is TO make a most careful search for any
signs of disease.