CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



Hams are the hind-legs of the pig, cured by 

 salting and smoking. They are generally in great 

 request, and form an article of extensive consump- 

 tion in Britain. Bacon is the whole side of a pig 

 cured. It has been much vaunted by some as a 

 remedy for indigestion, while by others a totally 

 different opinion is entertained. Although it con- 

 tains so large a proportion of fat as to render the 

 second opinion plausible, experience shews that by 

 the process of salting, this fat is rendered much 

 more digestible than it otherwise would be. 



The peculiarity of ham and bacon as nutritive 

 substances depends on the large proportion of car- 

 bonaceous as compared with nitrogenous matter 

 contained in them. When calculated as starch, 

 the former bears the relation to the latter of 20 or 

 24 to i. ' Hence it is,' to quote Dr Letheby, ' that 

 they improve the value of substances which are 

 rich in nitrogen, as eggs, veal, poultry, beans, and 

 peas.' 



Lard is that part of the fat of the pig which 

 melts easily, and forms a fine, soft, white grease. 

 It is extensively used, not only in household 

 economy, but by the pastry-cook, apothecary, and 

 perfumer. It should be, according to Martin 

 Doyle, of two qualities. The finest and whitest is 

 taken from the sides, and when well made, is far 

 better than any salt butter for cookery, and, from 

 the delicacy of its colour, is used by confectioners 

 for the finest kinds of cake and pastry. The 

 inferior lard is obtained from the intestines. The 

 blood of the pig, we may also observe, furnishes a 

 distinct article of food, being used in the pre- 

 paration of the black-puddings of the shops. 



Venison Hare Rabbit. The flesh of the deer 

 cannot be considered as an article of general 

 consumption in the British Islands. A few years 

 ago, the same remark was applicable to hares, 

 rabbits, and other game. Now, however, the 

 consumption of these animals is no longer chiefly 

 confined to the upper and middle classes, for 

 evidence given before a recent parliamentary 

 committee has shewn that they are sold in 

 almost incredible numbers to the working-classes 

 of London, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham, 

 and other large towns. Their flesh differs from 

 that of the domestic animals in containing more 

 nitrogenous matter, and less fat, and also in con- 

 taining certain flavouring principles of a bitter or 

 acid nature. From their constant motion and 

 exercise, wild animals acquire a drier and harder 

 flesh than that of the tame ; and those parts which 

 have the least motion as the back of a hare, for 

 example are most juicy and palatable. From the 

 same cause, the fluids of these animals are much 

 more apt to putrefy than the fluids of the domestic 

 kinds. 



The term venison, though applicable to the 

 flesh of all animals which are caught by way of 

 hunting, is generally restricted to that of the deer 

 kind as the buck, the doe, the hart, and the hind. 

 When well fed, killed at the right season, and pro- 

 perly dressed, venison forms a palatable as well as 

 a wholesome and readily digested food. The flesh 

 of hares was in high repute among the ancients, 

 both in dietary and in medicine. The youngest 

 and fattest are the best ; and those bred on plains 

 and mountains are preferable to those that live 

 in moist places the former feeding on aromatic 

 herbs, which gives to their flesh a peculiar flavour. 

 Rabbits are in more common use than hares ; and 



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their flesh contains less blood, and is therefore 

 whiter than that of deer or hares. They are in 

 prime season from the middle of October till the 

 end of January. 



Horse-flesh. In presence of the great scarcity of 

 animal food, it is unfortunate that prejudice should 

 prevent the inhabitants of this country from adopt- 

 ing horse-flesh as an article of diet. Experience 

 has distinctly shewn that the flesh of the horse 

 is both wholesome and palatable. This has been 

 known from a very early period of history. It is 

 also attested by the common usage of the Tartars, 

 Chinese, and other eastern nations ; and by the 

 increasing favour with which this description of 

 meat is regarded by several European nations. 

 Thus, while in 1 853, a banquet, organised at Vienna 

 for an experimental appreciation of horse-flesh, was 

 prevented by the interference of a mob, in 1854, or 

 one year subsequently, 32,000 pounds-weight of 

 this food were sold to the populace within fifteen 

 days. In times of unusual scarcity also it has 

 been used with great acceptance. A conspicuous 

 example of this was afforded during the late siege 

 of Paris, where 30,000 horses were consumed 

 within a period of four months. The writer can, 

 from personal experience, recommend the flesh 

 of the horse as a most agreeable and palatable 

 food. 



Poultry Game-birds. So far as experience 

 goes, the flesh of all birds is edible, though that of 

 some tribes is less palatable and wholesome than 

 that of others. As an article of food, it. is pretty 

 largely consumed in this country the domestic 

 fowl, turkey, goose, duck, pigeon, partridge, grouse, 

 and pheasant being the species which afford the 

 chief supply. According to Brande, 100 parts of 

 chicken-flesh yield 73 water, 20 albumen or fibrin, 

 and 7 gelatine that is, a total of 27 per cent, 

 nutritive matter. Of a few birds, especially the 

 woodcock and snipe, the legs are preferred to the 

 breast In the black-cock, the outer layer of the 

 pectoral muscle is of a dark-brown colour, while 

 the inner is white. A similar difference is observed 

 in many other birds, and perhaps it is general in 

 a slight degree. The muscular organs of birds 

 differ from those of quadrupeds in their flesh never 

 being marbled, or having fat mixed with the 

 muscular fibres. This is so far advantageous, as 

 the fat of most birds, the aquatic in particular, is 

 extremely difficult of digestion and assimilation. 



It is usual for writers on dietetics to classify the 

 flesh of feathered animals according to its colour, 

 or according to the leading habits of the birds as 

 regards their food and mode of life. On the whole, 

 it may be remarked that the younger and smaller 

 the bird, the more delicate and tender the flesh ; 

 that the female is generally more tender and deli- 

 cate than the male ; that domestication renders 

 birds more fleshy and tender ; and that the more 

 cleanly and carefully the animals are reared, 

 more wholesome and palatable their flesh become 

 It may also be added, as the result both of expe 

 rience and experiment, that poultry is more easily 

 digested when broiled ; is somewhat less digestibl 

 when roasted ; and is least easily digested whe 

 boiled. The less it is mixed and qualified 

 sauces, stuffings, &c. the better. 



The eggs of birds the hen, duck, goose, and 

 turkey are largely consumed in Britain, partly as 

 a direct article of diet, and partly in puddings, 

 pastry, and fancy-breads. It is scarcely necessary 



