4 BULLETIX 1086, 17, S. DEPARTMEXT OF AGRICULTL'RE. 



enced by the packers in commercial trade, and to use, so far as pos- 

 sible, their methods in cming, handling, and marketing the product. 

 On account of the lack of adequate facilities and sufficient funds to 

 conduct the tests independently with a quantity of meat large enough 

 to be representative of the packers' volume, the tests were conducted 

 in one of the large packing plants at Fort Worth and in another at 

 East St. Louis. The two packing companies provided the hogs, 

 which were selected by the representatives of the Bureau of Markets 

 assigned to conduct the tests. The companies also provided all of 

 the necessary help and facilities, and in every way cooperated to the 

 fullest extent. The work at each plant was under the direct super- 

 vision of a representative of the Bureau of Markets who was familiar 

 with packing-house conditions and who had had several years' experi- 

 ence in conducting tests of a similar nature. The tests were begun 

 in February and completed in June, 1919. 



PLAN OF EXPERIMENT. 



A series of 8 tests, in which the carcasses of 600 hogs were utilized, 

 was conducted at Fort Worth, Tex., and a series of 4 tests with 200 

 hogs was carried on at East St. Louis, 111. fl 



In making the killing tests at Fort Worth, 24 lots of 25 hogs eacl? 

 were used. There were 8 lots each of the oily, soft, and firm classes. 

 These tests were conducted in series, using 75 hogs for each test at 

 Fort Worth and 50 at East St. Louis. At Fort Worth they were 

 divided into lots of 25 in each of the 3 classes. Lots 1, 2, 3 represent 

 one test and 4, 5, 6 another. The 3 lots in each test were taken 

 through all curing processes and the retaining period at the same 

 time. They were handled under identical conditions, and all tests 

 were conducted alike. 



The hogs were bought on the open market, divided, marked, and 

 closely followed through every process of slaughter, curing, and 

 retaining by a bureau representative. Those bought at Fort Worth 

 averaged approximately 175 pounds in weight, while those pur- 

 chased at East St. Louis were slightly heavier. The lots classed as 

 oily at Fort Worth, "however, were omitted in the East St. Louis 

 tests because the cooler experts at that market made no distinction 

 between soft and oily carcasses. 



The hogs were selected according to weight, quality, and finish, 

 and care was taken to get them as nearly alike as possible. Care 

 also was used in selecting hogs to see that they came from territory 

 which would as nearly as possible insure their chilling either firm 

 or oily as desired, because there was no known method of determin- 

 ing before it was slaughtered how a live hog would chill out. 

 This was demonstrated several times in these tests and may be seen 

 by a comparison of the live-weight and chill-room records of Tables 



