cheap meat. We have had meat brought to the market to sell, that I considered unfit to eat, and had it sent off. There was some brought last winter.

Couldn't say whether it was diseased or not, but it looked bad. It was sent to Newhall's stall to sell; but he didn't offer to sell it when I told him that it must be sent away. Shouldn't object to veal of any age coming to the market. There has not been much young veal since this inquiry. Don't think it is right to prohibit the sale of young veal. It doesn't hurt any one, and a good many poor people are prevented from getting any meat if that is driven out of the market After the seizure of veal, the other day, I notified some who had young veal not to sell and it was taken from the stalls. Think they threw it into their bone tubs - don't know.

Don't know as there is any place in the city where they sell poorer meat than they do at the Blackstone market. Meat of the same quality is sold cheaper in Blackstone market than in any other market. If I saw a piece of meat that was unfit to eat on the stall of an occupant of the market I shouldn't object if I knew of his selling it to a sausage maker.

ors.

WM. DECOSTER, 46 North Market street. Wholesale commission business. Principal sales, beef from the West. Am acquainted with my consignors. Hammond Plumer & Co. are the principal consignWe receive about a car load a day —dressed beef. A car load represents about 25 live cattle. It is sent in refrigerator cars. have some quarters that are hurt from cooling—i. e., the animal heat does'nt get out. We sell it to any one who will buy it, telling them what the trouble is with it.

We

We sell very few calves, but get some from Maine and some from Worcester county. Most, if not all, those sent to us are four weeks old. Shouldn't consider the veal of a calf ten days old was really bad, i. e., unwholesome, but it isn't as good as older. Those under four weeks would be most likely to be under six days. Don't think I have sold one small veal in a year. It is the custom of commission houses to sell whatever is sent to them to the best advantage. The Brighton beef is not as good as our western slaughtered beef. Think I could tell beef that was slaughtered improperly. Have had occasion to refuse beef brought to me. Within two weeks a man from the country brought me the meat of a yearling bull, and I refused to receive it. I did'nt consider it unhealthy, but it was poor. Didn't think it would do any credit to my shop.

HENRY T. BROWN, 6 Central market. Sell beef, veal and mutton. Been in the market five years. There is a clerk of the market. The market contains twenty stalls. The occupants have a quarterly meeting. They hire by the month. Don't think any of the occupants slaughter their own beef. Buy my meats of Decoster & Plumer, and Sawyer & Hollis. Most of the occupants of the market live in the country. A good many of our customers are foreigners. Don't have complaints from customers about quality of articles very often. When they bring anything back, if it is not good, we throw it away. Don't know of any unwholesome meat being sold in the market. Don't know anything about the age of veal — never killed a calf. I don't make any difference in the price per pound between a large leg of veal and a small one. Have seen beef in the market, and round in wagons, that looked bruised,-jammed; don't know what caused it. Think we sell a better quality of meat than they do in Blackstone market. We sell as good meat, I think, as they do in Faneuil Hall market and Boylston market. Have seen small calves they call milkers in the wagons. I don't buy them, because I can't sell them to my customers; not that I consider them unwholesome.

HEARING FRIDAY, MAY 12, 1871.

HORACE W. JORDAN, member of the Board of Health of Brighton two years, and a member of the State Cattle Commission about three years. One branch of my business is butchering. My duty as a member of the State Cattle Commission has been to search out the cause of the hoof and mouth disease and stop the spread of it. Before we really found out what the disease was, I suppose cattle were slaughtered that had it. Most of the cattle are brought to Brighton from Albany. They are not fed at all during transportation. There are from twelve to sixteen in one car. They are from twenty to twenty-two hours on the way. They are loaded, say, at about ten o'clock, and get into Brighton about eight o'clock. When they put too many in a car, to save freight, some of them are liable to get down, and get killed or injured.

Q. What proportion are injured during transportation?

A. Should say not one out of 500; perhaps the proportion is larger than that. We have a week when they will come in all good; while in another train, next week, when they load the most

of them heavy, perhaps there will be two dead ones, or perhaps one nearly dead, to draw out of the car.

Q.

drawn out on the platform;

What do they do with these dead ones? A. — They have been sold at the cars they used to go a year ago to Boynton's try house, or to Ward's; but latterly, for a year, a certain set of Dutchmen have bought them at

the cars.

Q.

Who sells the animal, when found dead?

A.-The owner.

Q.-Does he take his own risk?

A. — Yes, unless some accident occurs. There have been instances where cattle have been injured by shutting up cars, when the railroad is liable; or in delay, the road is liable.

Q. walk?

What disposition is made, when the cattle are sick or unable to

A. They are drawn to the slaughter house, I should think, where the owner had the most confidence in the proprietor, — generally a friend, — who takes them, and works them up to the best advantage for the owner, and returns the sales, with the commission out.

Q.

That is, sells them the same as the others?

A. — Well, he works it up, either into sausages, or into Boston. It is damaged and lost until it comes to him.

Q. How does the condition of the meat furnished to the Boston market compare with that furnished in New York markets?

A.-I think the beef is in better condition than in the New York markets. I don't think there is any place in the world where beef can be dressed and look more perfect than in our markets. I am conversant with the New York markets. There is more in proportion of the Texas small cattle sold there than comes to Boston. There is also a nice class of cattle, but not in the same proportion as here.

Q. State where the sheep come from, and their condition on arrival ?

A. A great many come from Albany, and a great many from Vermont. There are more or less dead sheep on every train that comes in. We have posted the order that dead animals should all be under our direction. We have no jurisdiction in Cambridge or Watertown, but have stationed police officers on the bridge on the days the train comes here. But people may take them over the next day.

Q. Don't you have jurisdiction as State Commissioner? A.—I think not over there, as it is a dead animal and not a living one. Never thought we had any jurisdiction, as I don't believe the

sheep had any contagious disease. It was simply killed by being trampled to death.

Q. Is the flesh as good as one slaughtered?

A.—I should think not.

Q.
A.

What is done with dead sheep?

Sheep butchers get them, and I have always thought that the sheep find their way to the market as well as the dead cattle they can sell. I know we stopped a load of seven sheep the first week. A gentleman came up to know if they could not go to his slaughter-house and be skinned there, and the meat carried to the bone house. I told him we could not let him do that. He wanted to know if I didn't think he would do it. I said if he could make any arrangements to get the skins, I hadn't any objections. He said he would come to make arrangements. He said to me, "I want the tallow," and then he said “I want the kidneys." I made the remark "don't you want all the meat that is salable?" So I infer that most men in the business could not tell whether they were slaughtered or killed, and presume they met the same fate that cattle do.

A.-No calves come to Brighton. They come to Cambridge, and Medford. Our officers stopped a lot of seven on this side that got killed. The next day there were seven skins in Watertown of the same lot.

Q. What age should you judge the majority of them [the calves] -pretty young?

A.

Q.

- Calves three days old?

Yes, they will stand up longer than the cow in many cases.
What is done with young calves?

A. — I don't know; I can only say what I guess; it would be pretty hard work to track these fellows out. They will tell you they sell what they call milkers. I got a receipt from the man I stopped three weeks ago - one of these Dutchmen. I thought he had something that didn't look good, and asked him what they were. Said I, "Are they milkers; or did they die." He said they were milkers. He offered to carry them to the try-house and bring a receipt. I allowed him to do so. I thought afterwards I would go and look it up, as I have my doubts. The man gave $2 for the seven.

Q. What kind of man did the receipt come from?

A. Said he was a tallow man.

Q-There is not much tallow in calves three days old?

A.-Could not see any anywhere on them.

Q.-Is any action taken by the Board of Health.of Brighton to prevent the slaughter of small calves?

A. - No sir.

Q.They eat slaughtered calves at Brighton?

A. Yes, they have them from butcher wagons.

Q.Brighton is the headquarters for beef, and the other places for

calves?

A. Yes.

Q. What proportion of calves are less than four weeks old? A. Sometimes a whole car load of milkers comes, and then a carload of pretty good calves. I am not watching these calves every week, but go occasionally. One week most of them would be pretty good calves, and another half of them would be what I call milkers. I am going to put it inside; I should think one-eighth would be milk

ers.

A.

Q.—Then you speak pretty safe. How if you should say a quarter ? I would not be a great way out of the way if I should say that. Are you conversant with the manner of butchering calves?

Q.

A.—Not particularly.

Q.-You don't know whether the butchers use rum to keep the calves up when they are too weak to stand?

A. — No, sir.

Q.

A.

What quality of meat is furnished to sausage makers?

Generally, the cheaper qualities. Meat that could not be worked any other way. The sausage men get it all chopped and out of sight.

Q. Do you ever purchase sausages?

A. Not unless I know who makes them.

Q.-You do it, then, if you know who makes them?

A. — Yes, sir. Mr. Dana drives a wagon and makes his own sausages; he makes them once or twice a week, and I have sausages then for breakfast.

A. — Yes, sir; his sausages are good. I take them from men I can depend upon. I have eaten sausages from Mr. Ballard's and Mr. Leonard's stall that were called his.

Q. Do you know how Mr. Dana makes his sausages?