INSPECTION OF PIGS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2842, 2 September 1908, Page 11

INSPECTION OF PIGS.

PRESENT UNSATISFACTORY CONDITION. A MENACE TO PUBLIC HEALTH. CHRISTCHURCH, August 25. As notified by a Press Association telegram to-day, a deputation representing the Christchurch Meat Company, Messrs Dimock and Co., Ltd., (Wellington), and Grreen and Co. (Chrfetchurch) interested in the ham and bacon industry, waited upon the Hon. R. M'Nab yesterday in Wellington with respect to the absence of pompuLsory inspection of pig 6 slaughtered in the Dominion. Mr Murray returned from Wellington, to-day, and a member of the staff of the Press had an interview vith him on the subject. Mr Murray said ibat the operations of his oompany in jacon had been very much extended in joth islands. The season having just slosed, the figures with reference to the ndustry were naturally "^brought promilently before the manager of the company n Christ-church. The position revealed vith Tegard to the absence of compulsory nspection was of such gravity that after :onaultation with Messrs Dimock and Co. of Wellington) and J. H. Green and Co., 10th engaged in the same business, it was lecided that as the position was so acute . deputation should approach the Minister if Agriculture direct and put the matter >efore him, as they were all of opinion hat from the figures available it /was dghly necessary in the interests of public lealtn that all pigs slaughtered for sale hould be compulsorily subject to Goernment inspection. *' We do not want," aid Mr Murray, "to make the inspection ipply , to a farmer who might want to ise pigs for his own consumption, but we o say that when they are brought into the narket for public they should be inpected by Government. There is now no ystem of compulsory inspection existing, md the inspection to which the Christhurch Meat Company and other large :oncerns submit is quite voluntary on heir part. The request made by the leputation was that the lawi as it at iresenfc stood should be so altered that t should be an offence to sell bacon, etc., n the Dominion, or export it, unless the >jgs from which it was made had been laughtered under Government' inspection. Jhe Stock' Department returns ohow -that he percentage of swine affected with überculosis killed in the various works nd municipal abattoirs last year was .87 per cent., ana the return of the same epartment snowed that 7.95 per cent, of be plge In the country, were so affected." Tb© Hon. R, M'Nab, ia his reply to the eputatfon, $fr~ Murray s^atea, admitted jp correctness of these figure^ and went £to say wg.% frpnj figures. Jw ha. pwg ossfasioa fcnej percentage varf-ed from t$

the milk with which the pigs "were fed. He would f)oinfc out that it seemed to be most unfair that those who were' surrounding themselves with;, every .sanitary precaution, and who had' voluntarily submitted to the direct system of 'Government inspection and to the- heavy penalties accruing through the rejection of. diseased pigs, should be conducting their businesses under this handicap against those who had none of these disabilities. 'Though thie was the commercial .aspect of the.question, there was a still graver one involved in connection with the> public health. - They in the Dominion were properly very strict in regard to the inspection of cattle and sheep slaughtered,- though it was well known that their flocks were the healthiest in the world. 'With regard, -to sheep and lambs, it was well : known that the duties of the inspectors were- very light. He was quite in sympathy with' the necessity for inspection, particularly with regard to cattle, but he desired to point to the startling figures with regard to swine, for which no compulsory inspection was pro-

I yicled by !aw\ Regarding these figures, it ' \ seemed that the -Government had been ' ' "most careful as to the health of our fellow ! cptintrymen over the Bea¥ and for the good A ] name" of the Dommfon as to beef and j mutton, but with regard, to pigs they left the dwellers in the Dominion to the tender 1 mercies of unscrupulous individuals. When ' the number of pigs slaughtered under voluntary- inspection: were eliminated from the total' killed in the Dominion there | was still a very large number indeed in , which the percentage of disease would be | far greater than in those about which the Stock Department had figures. There j was no means of tracing these at all, or ascertaining the percentage of disease exist- ; ing, but it - was only fair to conclude that it was greater than where a system of inspection existed. There was no reason at all, it seemed to him, if the Government recognised the gravity of the situation, as it ought to dp, from the figures, admitted by the Minister to be correct, ; why the law. should not be altered in the direction indicated.' -He would like to see -

inspection, with the exception he had* mentioned, made compulsory all' round, ,and n.6. favour^ extended to - arlyone. - A^ present, to saythe least of it, the svsten> was most unsatisfactory and a Tnenffce'ta "public health. "Therefore 'no time should be lost in taking action/ "

A reSiSent-Of^South Melbourne recently, found one of ■ her little children playing: with a young carpet snake, whioh is- sup* < posed to have come out of an adjoining; timber yard. The reptile was captured, and the child escaped injury. M." Eugene Ysaye was some time aßOordered to pay. £320 to a Belgian railway, guard who alleged that he had bocomo deaf after the famous violinist had bqxecS his care. M. Tsaye was coming home \\i\h his brother from Antwerp, fund it wasstated that the assault followed a demand for tickets 'the violinist, who 'Wasdisturbed by the guard while asleep. An appeal has been made, and the damageshave now. been reduced to J360, as it vvas proved that the" guard's hoftcjiig was' defec* tive before the assault. •". • . ~ . -^ J