APPENDIX. 313 



west, all slaughtering of cattle to be restricted, as in 

 France, to the outskirts of the town. Mr. Cotterill, 

 whom I had known many years, then in the Commis- 

 sion of the peace, used his utmost influence among 

 his friends, and the plan was laid before the govern- 

 ing parties in the city, but without the slightest hope 

 of success. It no doubt presented a variety of diffi- 

 culties. Another plan, however, which was unat- 

 tended with any other difficulty than the redoubtable 

 bravery of the butchers, failed equally of success ; 

 one which Lord Somerville had much at heart. This 

 was to substitute the continental practice of laying 

 or pithing cattle, for the old English one of knocking 

 them down. Mr. Cotterill saw, among a number of 

 other examples, a bull seg receive seventeen blows with 

 the pole axe, before the miserable beast received his 

 quietus, in the mean time bellowing in a most piteous 

 and horrible manner ! the fellow all the while, most 

 courageously brandishing the axe in the face of the 

 fast bound, affrighted, and tortured animal ! Lord 

 Somerville's man laid or pithed with the knife, in 

 the neck between the horns, twelve oxen in a few 

 minutes, the beasts dropping down instantaneously, 

 as if shot. Proper pithing knives were sent to the 

 Victualing Office, but none of the butchers would 

 make use of them : this favourable and most conve- 

 nient practice however, is said to have been intro- 

 duced of late years, into Lincolnshire and the adjoin- 

 ing counties. 



The Sock and leathern sole Shoe. Shoeing 

 horses in this mode, has of late become somewhat 

 frequent in the metropolis ; yet strange as it may 



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