The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1911-07-29

MODEL MUNICIPAL ABATTO|
Admirable System of Inspecting and
Handling Food animals in Sue
cessfuI Operation at Paris, Texas.

cipal abattoir and REDUCTION plant il
the United States Was completed anC
started at Paris, Texas, in December
1909. Prior to the@construction Of
this municipal abattoir there were {
number of private slaughterhouses
in and around the city, most of then
rudely constructed, located on low
damp ground; USUALLY the only water
available was from Shallow wells OF
pools. Everything about them was eS
tremely insanitaryss The municipal
officers sought to Improve the con
ditions, but the slaaghterhouses be
ing outside the town were beyond
their immediate jurisdiction. Efforts
were made to induce the several
butchers to combineaor form a stock
company to build and operate a
modern fp1ant under city inspection
but. business rivalriEs prevented the
contamination of this. plan, Finally,
under the leadership of Mayor E.
H. McQuistion, q bond issue to OBJ
tain the necessary Funds was au-
thorized by popular vote, and the cit,
officials promptly erected the plant
shown in the accompanying views.
The accepted plans were those made
by Wannenwetsch &sCo., Buffalo, N.
Y, who also furnished the outfit
for the rendering plant.
The abattoir is located on one of
the principal streets near the cor
porate limits of the town, with
dwelling houses on ali sides of it,
one of them within 400 feet of the
plant. The buildingssare constructed
of wood and corrugated iron with
the exception of reefs, foundations
and floors, the latter being of con
crete. The reduction, killing and
cooling rooms are aII.two stories in
height, while the engine room, Of
flee and dressing robins are one
story.
IF the plant were to be recon
structed, says Mayor cQuistion, we
would build the cold storage and
chill rooms out ofssbrick or cement
and would remoVanS ur reduction
room to a distance II III ut least fly
faat. halaas place.
Immediately ad5aehs 70 the build
ing are stock peIla platform scales
and the necessary aan-ways to prop
erly facilitate thN handling of ami
mails for slaughter. The plant. is
large enough to take care of about
fifty head of cattle per day of ten
hours, but in addition to cattle, hogs
and sheep are also Slaughtered.
The city does not purchase any
animals or sell any meat; it merely
slaughters, under proper sanitary
the animals that are Of
fered by the local butchers or others
who wish to avail themselves of the
facilities offered. The use of the
plant is. not made directly
compulsory, but by ordinance it is
provided that all animals must be
in some plant which has
all the various sanitary precautions
and equipment maintained at the
plant. AS a result, all To-
cal slaughtering is done at the
abattoir.
The killing room is we'll lighted
and perfectly screened. All doors
have vestibules and are double
screened. The floors are concrete,
laid to grade and the en-
tire surface troWeIt finished. Bell
traps are provided at the low points
and each equipped with a water seal
and all connected with the city sew
ers. Overhead is a complete system
IF steel tracks and travelling troll
eys SO laid out as to facilitate in
Ia hn re
al the animals from the knock down
pen out to the inspectors rail and
INTO the chill room.
In the killing room are the scald-
ng vat and the Inspectors tables
Upon which the Viscera are all laid
or inspection before being removed
@ the rendering room. Provision is
also made here for catching and con-
serving the blood, 1t being an i'm
oortant ingredient in the product
# the reduction plant: The equip
nent Of this room also includes
1nives, scrapers, #skeWers, hand
1oists and such other implements as
ire usually found in the Ordinary
slaughterhouses:
All animals slaughtered receive
:inai inspection and are stamped and
jagged while upon the inspectors rail
4 the killing room. They are next
moved on overhead tro}leys into the
hill room, which is Immediately adj
accent. Here they remain about
,welve hours lat a temperature Of
40 degrees F., after which
he carcasses are removed into the
'efrigerating room proper, to await
he demand Of the meat cutter. The
walls, ceilings and floors of both
he chill and cooler rooms are in
sulated with waterproof Lith board
aid in cement.
Above both chill room and cooler
Ire bunker rooms or coil lofts for
.Ie direct expansion piping which
axes up the heat rising from the.
neat hung on the rails in the rooms
ae1ew. The drip from these pipes
when frost melts off is caught in
pans and trapped out of the building.
Dry refrigeration is thus assured,
,,a Nfo,-or NJoo7,ie.fian writpc. stNo