I 
558 THE SLAUGHTER-HOUSE QUESTION. 
1874. He argues that the Act which condemns them looks 
only to one reason, which does not now exist—viz., the fact 
that they are nuisances; and it classes slaughter-houses for 
the preparation of human food in the same category with 
knackers' yards for slaughtering diseased horses, firework 
manufactories, tallow-melters, and the like offensive trades. 
But, owing to good sanitary regulations, slaughter-houses, as 
Dr. Stevenson testifies, are not now offensive. Moreover, 
all political philosophy is founded not on the hope of an 
impracticable perfection, but on a balance of probable advan¬ 
tages ; and whatever makes food dear and scarce may be 
more deadly than the effluvia of putrefaction. But not only 
meat spoiled in large quantities during hot weather by 
transport from a distance, and therefore made dear and 
scarce, but there is the offal —the heads and plucks, etc., which 
do not appear at the tables of M.P.'s, nor yet of sanitary 
philosophers, but yet form an important part of the food of 
the poor.* Moved by these considerations Dr. Brewer's 
Bill proposes simply to let things be. 
A second plan is, not to allow of slaughtering at all times, 
but during the summer months only. Some would restrict 
the privilege to lambs, sheep, and calves. 
The real objection to leaving things as they are is, that in 
many parts of London,under its present fragmentary, inactive, 
and inefficient government, private slaughter-houses may 
possibly be multiplied, and allowed to be established in the 
most improper places; hence that not only all the evils in¬ 
separable from well-kept places will exist, but there will be 
others, such as the preparation of diseased meat; and it will 
be recollected that some years ago even water-closets were 
used as slaughter-houses. 
On the whole it occurs to us that the best plan would be to 
allow no new 7 private slaughter-houses to be established in 
any large town ; to limit the operation of existing slaughter¬ 
houses in populous neighbourhoods to sheep only; to estab¬ 
lish more public abattoirs in convenient parts of the circuit of 
London or other tow T ns; to make the Medical Officer of 
Health of each district responsible, and to require his sig¬ 
nature to attest the fitness of all existing or proposed 
# Any one who wishes to test this may go of an evening to Hollis’s pork- 
shop in Oxford Street, and see the poor buy faggots at a penny apiece, 
with a ladleful of rich gravy. If anyone asks, What are faggots ? we pique 
ourselves on being able in answer to the undederivatur, to point to the 
Italian word fegato — i.e., liver. These faggots are choice morsels of viscera 
and fat done up together and baked. If pigs were not killed in Oxford 
Street the poor could get no faggots. The place where the pigs were 
killed has—or had when we inspected it—-a positively aromatic smell. 
