Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the administrative procedures for controlling danger to man through the use as food of the meat and milk of tuberculous animals.
- Great Britain. Royal Commission on Tuberculosis
- Date:
- 1898
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the administrative procedures for controlling danger to man through the use as food of the meat and milk of tuberculous animals. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.
89/502 (page 49)
![ing would be more suitable as meat inspectors than anyone else of the general public ?—Yes, I think so. 949. Do you thiuk it would assist those gentlemen when appointed inspectors, or anyone also when appointed as inspectors, if the Local Government Board, or any other board, were to draw up certain regulations as to what they might condemn or not ?— I think so. 950. That carcases similar to what we were talking about just now might be dipped, or some other pre- caution taken, instead of leaving everything, as some people do, to their discretion ?—Yes, I think that the Board might draw up some regulations on the lines on which we should condemn a carcase. 951. In a rough sort of way ?—In a rough sort of way. 952. That would get rid of the objection of the butcher's that there is a want of uniformity ?—Yes. 953. Do you, as an inspector, think there would be any great hardship in all cattle being slaughtered in public slaughter-houses ?—Well, in London—I am only able to speak of London—of course there has been always among butchers a very strong objection to slaughter in public slaughter-houses. I think in 1844 the Act was passed to get rid of them perma- nently either in 30 or 40 years afterwards. Dr. Brewer was on the Metropolitan Board of Works at that time, and an Act was passed continuing private slaughter- houses at that time, and I think Dr. Brewer was one of the most prominent leaders of the movement. 954. Yes, but is it not the reason that butchers are probably too closely looked after ?—No, not for a moment. You might take one or two men who would be so, but the majority of butchers in London kill very good meat, and I do not think they would allow for a moment—many of them would not let the carcase of a cow be slaughtered on the premises. 955. But do you not think that considerable im- provement, at any rate, in the way of examination, could be carried out very much better in a public slaughter-house ? — Undoubtedly, so far as that is concerned, it would be. 956. Do you think it would be possible to keep a thorough supervision of every carcase that passed through this district, or any other, as long as you have private slaughter-houses?—I think so. I think, under the regulations of the County Council, the slaughter-houses are watched very closely. I do not know more about it, aad I think that they are wonderfully well conducted. 957. In smaller districts do you think it would be any hardship to the butchers if, say, a butcher were appointed as an inspector, and there was a carcase over which there was some dispute, if that carcase was compelled to stand, say, naif a day, until it was seen by a veterinary surgeon who had higher qualifi- cations ?—No, I do not; in fact, it is a thing I have very often done myself in the slaughter-houses. I have said You had better let this carcase remain over for a certain time, and I have examined it later on. 958. And in small rural districts the veterinary surgeons couid probably examine all carcases either in the morning or evening, or at any other stated time of the day, and still attend to their ordinary duties besides ?—Yes. 959. And do you think that the work would be carried out well, and probably by the best men :—I think very likely a scheme of that kind might be worked very well. 960. (Mr. Murphy.) With reference to the use of veterinary surgeons as meat inspectors, if you had a large slaughter-house do you think that it might be possible for a veterinary surgeon to act as director, and to leave a good deal of actual inspection to subor- dinate officers, who would not themselves be veterinary surgeons;] it might be found expensive to employ veterinary surgeons through a large administration ? —So that a veterinary inspector should call once or twice a day, and see the condition of the carcases and pass them or reject them. I 94260. 961. But it might be set aside if they had any doubt Mr. about it?—Yes 1 see that, that is practically, if I am S.J.Iiaymem not travelling too far, what I wanted to introduce into M.R.C.V.S. our market. In our market we have a large number oc v- ,QO, „,. . , . ,. . „. , °., ,6 JSov. 1896. of things, sheep especially coming oft the railway, and _ they get dead in the truck, and they are sent to the slaughter-man at once. I have a man about the slaughter-house, who is likewise looking after these, they will say there is the sheep, we should like you to look at it, and I walk in, and if it is unfit I condemn it. I think these men under my control do practically what Mr. Murphy has suggested—they keep them back for me to examine before removing them from the slaughter houses. 962. Then with reference to the proportion of cattle that you found had tuberculosis amongst the total examined for pleuro-pneuinonia, 723, you say there was 19£ per cent. ?—Yes. 963. Could you say what proportion of that 723 you would be disposed to say was unfit for food ?—No, I cannot. I had a very free hand at that time, the director requested me under no circumstances to allow any meat to leave the slaughler-houses that I had the slightest doubt about, so that there should be no bother; and unless an animal was in an exceedingly good condition that was affected with tuberculosis, I condemned it, but I could not tell you what proportion. 964. Not approximately ?—No, but I passed a good few of them that were affected with tuberculosis. I have not the slightest hesitation in saying that. 965. You would not condemn an animal if it had only the organs affected and these organs could be removed ?—Not unless they gave evidence of wasting through malnutrition. 966. You get a number of milch cows from the London cow-sheds ?—Yes, a great many. 9S7. Do they come to be sold again as milch cows, or to be killed and sold for meat ? — To be sold as meat, and I think I can quote a couple of sales- men who will sell probably between them 180 cows weekly, but I think quite three-fourths of those cows go into the large towns of the north, the manufacturing districts; they are cows, as a rule, in very good condition. 968. They go there for what purpose ?—For meat; in mining districts they prefer cow beef, but I do not know why ; they seem to be very fond of it. 969. Have you any idea as to the proportions or those animals that may be found to have tuberculous udders ?—No, as often as I examine those 1 never examined the udders of those cows, but I do not think the percentage would be very large. I think if a man in a shed finds the udder of a cow becoming indurated he gets rid of the cow pretty speedily; of course, there has been danger for the time. 970. Would it be a tedious piece of work to observe that for a number of months ?—At the present time, personally I do not see many of them like that, but it would be. I do not see how you could do it very well. People kill their animals and cut out the udders, and remove them from the carcase. 971. Ami then the meat is afterwards dressed?— Yes, and seen by me. 972. You would not condemn the flesh of a cow because the udder was affected ?—No, I should not think of it. 973. It would not affect it ?—I do nut thiuk it would, it would take so long, and you would require someone to be in various slaughter-houses to get sufficient data to form any opinion upon it. 974. Those slaughter-houses are separate places?— Yes, Dr. Thorne, in respect of the slaughter-houses at the Metropolitan Market, said they were under the control of the Corporation of London, but the}' are to all intents and purposes private slaughter-houses. 1 have the control and inspection of them, but they are practically private, and a man can close the doors wlieu he pleases and open it again. 975. Have you visited any of the public slaughter- houses on the continent ?—I only walked through G](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21365076_0089.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
