The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1914-07-22
HORSE FLESH IS
EATEN IN PARIS
Thousands Are Butchered
Every Year.
MANY INOORSE THE PRACTICE
No tuberculosis Germs and
Is Said To Be Supe.
riOr To Beef.
HYGIENE ABATTOIRS IN USE

Commander Vachon, of the
Eclair, is an ardent advocate of the
horse meat trade, both from a hui
manitarian and hygienic platform.
He will always help in turning a
horse into q sausage or steak rather
than see it pass its declining days in
suffering, and he considers the flesh
in many respects more sanitary than
ordinary butchers meat. principally
from the well known immunity of
horses from tuberculosis
There is a great deal, doubtless.
to be said in favor of his theories,
and that he is by no means singular
in his fancy is proved by hippophag
ic statistics. There are 500 horse
butchers in Paris. and in the last
three years 1874, 900 horses have
been sacrificed at the Vanguard
! slaughter house. The meat is sold
according to quality at prices rang
ing from Sd. to I'd. a pound for the
primest. The intcstines are used
for making glue. and bones and
hoofs fetch about rs. the 100
| pounds. Figures are not given for
the sausage trade, and it may be
guessed that a considerable quantity
of horse sausage is sold under other
names without being any worse.
The eating of horse is as old as
the world, and now that every pre-
caution is taken, as it is in Paris, to
see that no diseased meat ever
comes into the market. the horse, as
it is supplanted by the motor in the
streets, may in turn GUST the OK
from the poor mans table. The fac
ulty declare that its flesh is incom-
parably digestible and free from
many very obnoxious germs. espec-
tally the Koch bacillus.
Commander cVahong gives an in
structive story. beginning with a let
ter in which the writer stated that
he had three horses no longer fit for
work, and that he wanted to be sure
that they We're put out of suffering
painlessly and eXpeditiously. The
beasts were accordingly sent up by
train in comfortable horse box
from the south to Paris, with a spe-
cial declaration that they We're in
tended for food. which entitled the
sender to special reduction in
transport. Notice having been sent
to the butchers and veterinaries the
horses We're met and examined at |
once, with the following result:
No. IA young and very fine |
animal, but with disease of the |
blood. so that nobody would buy at |
any price. A telephone message |
quickly brought down the munich
pal slaughterers, who paid one
pound and took the beast away.
No. "A thick but sound
horse. and No. 3, an older but first
class animal, from butchers point
OF view. After weighing and de-
Quoting "A hundred weight or so for
useless aterial, it was calculated
that the two together would give
about $40 kilogrammes, or about l.
100 pounds. good meat. which was
bought then and there for eighteen
odd pounds, or nearly twenty
pounds for the three The sale.
however, was not complete until the
intestines had been examined by
the veterinaries. The two sound
ones We're then killed painlessly, a
mere tremor marking the passage
from life to death, and the veteri-
nary surgeons made very thorough
analysis before giving the necessa-
ry certificate. The slightest trace of
infectious disease would have en-
tailed the confscation of the carcass
from the market. and its being sent
TO the ordinary refuse slaughter
house
lt is curious that precisely during
the last three years. when all the |
and large amount of cab !
md cart traffic has been transformed
he number OF horses slaughtered at
Vaugirard has decreased from 65,- 4
200 in 1910 to $4,000 last year. |
This is serious matter for the
horse butchers. who are beginning to
complain of a crisis In their trade
md II il continues the prices will 9
'oon have to be raised London
Standard.