The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1906-06-05

many specific instances Of defects
found In particular houses.
Before entering the buildings we
noted the condition Of the yards them
selves as shown in the pavement, pens
vaducts and platforms. The pave
ment is mostly Of brick, the bricks laid
with deep grooves between them, which
inevitably AL with manure and refuse.
Such pavement cannot be properly
cleaned.
Systematic ventilation of the work
rooms is not found in any of the estab
lishments we visited In few In
stances electric fans mitigate the st
fling air, but usually the workers toll
without relief Ia humid atmosphere
heavy with the 0dOrs OF rotten wood,
decayed meats, sinking Otfal and en-
trails.
In some OF the largest establish
ments sides that are sent TO what Is
known as the b0ning room are thrown
in heap upon the floor. The workers
climb over these heaps of meat, select
the pieces they wish and frequently
throw them down upon the dirty floor
beside their working bench. Even In
cutting the meat upon the bench the
work is usually held pressed against
their aprons. and these aprons were
as rule lndescribably filthy.
Meat scraps were also found being
Shoveled into receptacles from dirty
floors. where they were left TO lie until
again shoveled into barrels or into ma
chimes for chopping These floors, it
must be noted, were in most cases
damp and soggy, In dark, i'll ventilated
rooms and the employees In utter igno-
rance of cleanliness or danger to health
expectorated at will upon them. In n
word, we saw meat shoyeed from
filthy wooden floors, piled on tables
rarely washed and pushed from room
10 room in rotten box carts.
''An absence Of cleanliness was found
everywhere in the handling OF meat
being prepared for the various meat
food products. After killing, carcasses
are well washed and up to the time
they reach the cooling room are han
died in fairly sanitary and cleanly
manner
'ln one well known establishment
/ we came upon fresh meat being shoy
| eled into barrels and regular proper
/ ton being added of stale scraps that
had lain on dirty floor in the corner
of room for some days previous. In
another establishment equally well
known, long table was noted covered
with several hundred pounds of cooked
4 scraps Of beef and other meats Some
of these meat scraps were dry leath.
cry and unfit TO be eaten. and in the
heap were found pieces of pigskin and
even some bits of rope strands and
other rubbish Inquiry evoked the
frank admission from the man in
charge that this was TO he ground up
and used in making ported ham
"Al of these canned products bear
labels OF which the following is sam.
pie:
'Abattoir No. 49,. The contents of
this package have been inspected ac-
cOrding to act of congress of March 3,
1891. Quality guaranteed
"The phraseology of these labels Is
wholly unwaIranted. The government
inspectors pass only upon the health
fulness of the animal at the time of
killing. They know nothing Of the
processes through which the meat has
passed since this inspection.
''In another establishment piles OF
sausages and dry, moldy canned meats
admittedly several years old. were
found, which the superintendent stated
to us would be tanked aud converted
into grease. The disposition to be
made of this was wholly optional with
the superintendent or representative
of the packers, as the government does
not concern itself with the disposition
OF meats after they have passed Ia