74 THE AMEKICAN MONTHLY [May 



Microscopic Inspection of Pork for Export. 



The 1897 Year Book of the Department of Agriculture 

 just published, contains a photograph taken in the room 

 where 60 female meat inspectors are at work each with 

 her instrument before her. Apparently an order was 

 given for every one of them to be looking through the 

 tube at the moment of photographing. The report on 

 the subject is as follows: 



In 1881 our pork was prohibited entrance into Ger- 

 many, France, and the principal countries of the conti- 

 nent of Europe, on the ground that it was infested by 

 trichinae and was injurious to human health. 



Notwithstanding the fact that it could not be shown 

 that our pork had caused disease, and that it was mani- 

 festly more wholesome than the European pork, and not- 

 withstanding the most vigorous protests were made by 

 the American Grovernment, the trade was crushed and 

 destroyed. The year before the prohibition went into 

 effect we sold to France 70,000,000 pounds and to Ger- 

 many 43,000,000 pounds. 



For ten years our pork was shut out of nearly every 

 market of continental Europe, when in 1891 the bureau 

 began the microscopic inspection and certification of pork 

 destined to the markets of the prohibiting countries. 

 This action led to the removal of the prohibitions, but 

 the restoration of the trade was a slow and difficult pro- 

 cess. Our brands of meat were no longer familiar to the 

 people of those countries, commercial connections had 

 been severed, and requirements as to cuts and cures had 

 materially changed. It was like introducing an article 

 into a country for the first time. Moreover, the prohi- 

 bition had engendered suspicion as to the wholesomeness 

 of our product, while the agitation had established preju- 

 dice and antipathy. There were vexations and burden- 



