14 
F. S. BILLINGS. 
With reference to the percentage of trichinae in American 
pork, we find the following: 
Kraemer (Gottingen) found 30 per cent, of the American 
hams examined by him, trichinous: Fuge (veterinarian, Gott.) 
found 24 out of 824 American hams infected ; singularly enough 
the sugar-cured hams ” were found more seriously infected than 
those cured in the common way—a mere accident. In Germany, 
on the contrary, it is estimated that of every 10.000 swine, but 
one will be found trichinous. (This does not agree with the 
above-given statistics.) 
The following is given as an attempt at explaining the greater 
per centage of trichinae among our swine : 
“ The swine which are brought to the large American slaughter 
houses are allowed to feed upon the refuse from slaughtered 
swine, and in this way have time and opportunity to infect them¬ 
selves. Such infected swine are themselves slaughtered, and 
again give cause to infection to those that may remain, or which 
may have arrived later, by feeding upon the refuse of the slaught¬ 
ered swine. Accordingly, this evil must go on, constantly extend¬ 
ing, and all persons must be earnestly warned against the con¬ 
sumption of raw American pork. By the so-called ‘ rapid smok¬ 
ing’ or ‘ curing process’ practiced in America, the trichinae in 
the peripheral, or outside parts of the hams are doubtless killed, 
but those more deeply situated are not.” 
The author of the above, when speaking of “ feeding the swine 
in our large slaughter-houses with the refuse of those previously 
slaughtered,” certainly knew absolutely nothing about the subject 
upon which he was writing. At neither of the large packing- 
establishments in the vicinity of Boston is this the case, and we 
would like to ask the author, how much time does he suppose is 
given for infection and invasion in establishments killing one 
thousand or more per day ? 
It takes, according to the best German authorities, from 5 to 7 
days for the newly introduced trichinae to bring forth their young, 
from the time of their introduction. 
No large American packing-house keeps a lot of swine on hand 
