18 ANIMAL FOOD KESOUECES OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. 



fond of it. It had not the appearance of being raw, but 

 resembled in colour that which has been well boiled. It 

 had been deprived of all ruddiaess by the intense cold." 



Frozen meat, unless losing greatly in weight by 

 evaporation, owing to the dryness of circumambient air, 

 will, like frozen fish, decompose on exposure to warmth.. 



The decomposition is activated by atmospheric im- 

 purity ; and it is easy to understand how, in the moun- 

 tains of Thibet, the rarefied air, of great dryness, 

 mobility and freedom from putrefactive germs, would 

 satisfy the conditions for abstracting sufficient moisture, 

 ■even from frozen meat, whilst effectually preventing 

 ■decay. Pure dry air, either hot or cold, being an admir- 

 able desiccaiit, is under suitable conditions an excellent 

 preservative. 



Frozen meat has kept for ages, and during the 

 Eussian and North American winters, the people are 

 compelled to put up with it. Freezing is, however, 

 prejudicial to the meat, and commercially somewhat 

 ■expensive, since it necessitates the construction not 

 only of ordinary ice-houses, but of freezing chambers at 

 the ports of shipment and landing, and there are 

 innumerable impediments in the way of getting the 

 frozen produce delivered untainted to the customer. 

 Experimentally the process is simple and quite successful, 

 but not as a means of supplying the nation's food. 

 It has, however, of late years been brought more success- 

 fully into practice in the importation of carcases from 

 Australia and America. 



It is curious to notice the various parts of animals 

 that are eaten, or selected as choice morsels by different 

 persons or classes. Sheep's head, pig's head, calf's head 

 and brains, ox head, the heads of ducks and geese, ox 

 tongue; horse tongue, reindeer tongue, walrus tongue, 

 cranes' tongues, cods' tongues, etc. Fowls' and ducks' 

 tongues are esteemed an exquisite Chinese dainty. The 

 pettitoes of the sucking pig, or the mature feet and hocks 

 of the elder hog, sheep's trotters, calf's feet, cow heel, 

 bears' paws, elephants' feet, the feet of ducks and geese 



