Williston graphic., 1918-12-19

N GRAPHIC
squarely on his hack when stuck. A
narrow, straight-bladed knife, about
eight inches long, should be used. The
knife should be pointed directly to.
wards the root Of the tail and held
in line with the backbone. Thrust
the knife in six or eight inches direct.
ly in front Of the breast bone. Then
turn the knife and withdraw it as this
sewers the areries in the neck and
insures better bleeding. Avoid stick.
ing the heaht, for if this is done the
blood will not be pumped from the ar.
teries. After sticking, the hog may
be turned over on the side.
Water for scalding may best be
heated in a large caldron near the
place of butchering. Far medium
sized hogs, barrel is satisfactory for
scalding purposes. A block and tao
kle for hosting purposes is valuable
for lifting the carcass in and out of
the barrel and for hanging up when
the entrails are to be removed.
Do Not Have Water Too Hot.
For scalding the water should be at
temperature of 1856 degrees to 1876
degrees F., thermometer being used
If the water is too hot the hair is
likely to set, causing even more
trouble than if too cold. A teaspoon
full of lye or small shovel full of
wood ashes added to every 80 gallons
of water and we'll stirred will. aid in
removing the scurf.
Insert the hog hook in the lower
jaw, place the hog on the table, and
slide it into the barrel. The rear end
of the hog is scalded first for the rea-
son that if the water is too hot and
The hair sets it can be removed easier
from the rear than from the fore
part of the hog. The hog should be
kept moving in the water to he sure
that no part will rest against the side
of the barrel. Occasionally the hog
should be drawn out of the water to
air, when the hair may be "tried." I"
When the hair and scurf slip easily
from the surface, scalding is complete
Pull the hog out upon the table and
remove the hair and scurf from the
legs and feet at once. The simplest
way to accomplish this is to twist the
legs in both hands. Use the hog
hook to remove the dewclaws at the
same time. Remove the hair and
scurf from the rear end Of the hog
by means of a bell shaped scraper.
Cut the skin about 3 or 4 inches
long just below the hooks in both hind
legs. Yoosen the tendons and insert
the gambrel. Be sure that both ten
dons in each leg are loosened before
inserting the gambrel. Now scald
the front part of the hog. After
the front of the hog is scalded pull
it out on the table as before. Re-
move the hair and scurf from the ears
forelegs, and head Immediately, as
these parts cool very quickly. Use
the bell shaped scraper to remove
the remaining hair and scurf. II
the hair fails to yield in any particu-
lar region, cover that portion with a
gunny sack and pour on hot water.
When most of the hair is removed
pour hot water over the entire carcass
and shave off, by means of knife
the hair that is left. Hang up the
hog and pour bucket full of cold
water over the carcass and scrape
from the surface the remaining dirt
or scurf. .
Remove Leaf Lard From Warm Car
cass
The entrails should then be removed
Furthermore while the carcass is still
warm, remove the leaf lard or kidney
fat as this facilitates the cooling of
the carcass and lessons the danger of
the hamh and loins souring. The
leaf lard should be spread out on a
table to cool with the thin membrane
side turned down.
The carcass should be cooled after
slaughtering, but not allowed to freeze
Temperature can not be controlled
on the farm, but it is possible to kill
when the weather is favorable. Sc
lect a day in winter when there is
chance for cooling the carcass before
the surface freezes. The desirable
temperature for cooling meat is "a to
40 degrees F. In the summer time
it is necessary to have. refrigeration.
In the fall it is best to kill in the even
ing, allowing the carcass to cool over
night. Hang the carcass in dark
cellar or a cool room in the barn be-
fore the flies can get at it. Freshly
killed meat absorbs odors very read
lily; do not hang the carcass in fresh
ly painted room or in a room with
tar, kerosene, or gasoline.
PRESERVATION OF MEAT
Cutting up and curing meat is
taken up in Bulletin No. IL issued by
the Extension Division, N. Oak. Agr.
College. It contains just the infor-
nation needed for preserving meat
4 so as to secure the best flavor and
keeping quality. The salt pork, the
smoked hams, the bacon, the corned
beef, etc, should be cured on the
farm.