The daily sentinel., 1901-01-08
THE BELGIAN HARE.
Some Interesting Facts Concern
ing This Popular Little
Ouadruped.

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is favorable to the animals. The ordi-
nary variety is desirable for meat, and
the highly bred variety means money.
When such men as j. Pierpont Nor
gan, William Rockefeller and 81. M.
Flagler become interested in the Bel
gian hase, there must be some worthy
attraction about the animal. Mr.. Nor
gan has contracted for some of the finest
specimens obtainable in England, which,
by the way, is the home Of the Belgian
hare. Mr.. Rockefeller is constructing a
model rabbitry at his country place on
the Hudson, and Mr.. Flagler is estab-
fishing an extensive home for hares ON
his Florida estate. II this new industry
is good enough for millionaires to take
hold of, it certainly should interest the
man with the scanty purse, for the fact
is, this ind ustry is proving itself another
CONNER cial boon for the latter.
AS meat producer the Belgian hare
is not excelled, the white, tender. deli
cately favored meat being pronounced
unequaled by expert epicures the world
over. II is freely prescribed by the med
ical profession, as it is free from any oil
and can be retained on the most delicate
stomach. The consumptive home in
Denver uses many pounds Of this easily
digested meat each week, and the de-
mand is steadily increasing in hospitals
and hotels, as its value becomes known.
The meat can be cooked, fried, broiled
or roasted, just as one would prepare
chicken. 1t makes splendid pot pie, re-
sembliug chicken go much that it is i'm
possible for many to tell the differences.
There is no cleaner animal on earth than
the Belgian hare, its principal food be-
ing hay and grain, not scraps from the
table as some people have been led to
believe oats, and what is known as
South Park hay, making the best food
in this state. 1t will readily be seen
the chicken, yet the chicken did not
have nearly as much to contend with be-
fore it found universal favor. But the
Belgian hare is here to stay, and will be
a prime favoriCe when its worth becomes
better known.
In England, many pounds OF this meat
are annually imported, the immense de-
mand being far greater than the home
supply, yet England has been raising
Belgian hares for over fifty years. If all
the hares in America were offered at the
present time and eaten az freely as chick
en-, the supply wouldn't last over two
days. which shows that this industry is
only in its infancy yet
1t is a good plan to buy your hares
only from local breeders, for then you
will get just the age wanted for broiling,
roasting or stewing. The meat sells al
twenty cents per pound, but, of course,
the fancy stock can't be sold at such a
low figure, neither can fancy chickens
compete with the common kind in the
open market Despite this fact, fancy
stock will always bring good price on
account of it's scarcity, there being 80
many disqualified youngsters, or "culls."
in every litter, no matter how we'll sired
the parents may be. A doe, having a
fine pedigree and costing good sum of
money, may never have an offspring
which could be sold for more than ten
dollars.
1t may be ridiculous to the uninitiated
when told OF rabbit" costing even hfty
dollars, yot nothing is thought Of paying
this much for a prize rooster, and the
Ia ia np1v "a rhickop
The greatest mistake is made by con-
founding the Belgium hare with our
common wild rabbits, there being no just
comparison, the one differs from the
other as much as day from night. The
meat OF the hare is white and finely hav-
ored, while the meat of the rabbit is
dark, coarse and stringy. Again, the
skin Of the rabbit is 80 fraii that it is al
most impossible to remove it without
tearing, while the skin of the hare is
tough, easily removed and cured, and
Just thin enough to make good gloves.
This branch of the industry has not been
developed to any extent in America, yet
its Importance is far-reaching. The Bel
gian hare must be credited with practi-
cally all the fur sent out by Belgium, be-
cause Belgium is = thickly settled coun
try, therefore no wild animals can be the
eource NJ this aupp1v and RelUium ia