MUNICIPAL ABATTOIR.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 675, 27 November 1909, Page 15

MUNICIPAL ABATTOIR.

OPENED BY THE MAYOR. THE PIG-KILLING REGULATIONS. The fatted'bullock was killed at the munioipal abattoir yestorday morning preparatory to the performing ofthe .opening ceremony; which was carried out by tho Mayor in the afternoon. '-Three drag loads of city councillors and officials drove out to the now abattoir, loaving the Town Hall at 2.15*' and they were joined at .by a number of others interested in tho latest municipal undertaking. On arrival at the abattoir, the visitors mspoctod tlio works, and were improssed by, the airiness' 1 and goneral cloanliness ,of the spacious premises. Tho Mayor (Dr.. Newman), in declaring the abattoir opon, road a telegram from tho Hon. T.. llaokonzio Tegrotting his inability, to bo present at the opening ceremony owing to his iabsancoVfromn'tqttn.' An; apology, for absence was also received from the ltev. H. Van Staveren. ' Dr. Newman remarked that tho opening of the abattoir was another great advance for 1 tho city, as it . was absolutely: necessary to health that the! meat food 'wluch the oitizons. purchased , should go through the - abattoir, without which: unwholesome meat might get, ;into ; the city.. .Under : the regulations of . the new- undertaking, there was no chancer: of ~in-* feoted nieat being, sent into the. city.' From this day on they would havo: perfectly clean meat ■ in tho city, and lio trusted that tho milk-siipply would bo placcd on a somowhat eimllnr. oasia before very lfing. The building of tho abattoir had beon superintended by tho City Engineer (Mr. W. H: Morton), who had in .- this enso, as ;in all tho ' works he under-' took, out an excellont job. (Applause.) . Councillor • George • ■ ShiriclilTe, ■>, chairman of the ■ Abattoirs 1 Committeo, remarked, that '.whatever ' views the public 'held : on the question of munioipal trading, he thought that on© v.-fiUid finy thattho municipality, should not carry on the-abattoir.. Some comment had been made "dti the length, of .t'imo-it had taken, to get the abattoir under way, but the principal difficulty: had been in obtaining; a/ suitnble Bito owing .to'-the configuration ,of -Wellington. -The'vsite 'decided. on : was, in. his opinion,, thd'verj' best that: had. been .offered.;. The -:'oity. engineer had done' his part , of .the work l most .capably. '. Wellington/had an toir ; :which ;was; Mcond ;to : none :ih 7 _tho .Domin-. ion, and' one' ivhicli should fulfil its work to the .satisfaction {of- butchers,'.;who, ,he underst<kxl, welcomed the. erection of - tho works.v It. was certain 1 , that,,everything,; would'..':bo . abso-, lutcly clean as a result:-6f- the sanitary condi'tions .nnd6r> which the /meat was killed.; - The works had been -constructed to- deal with 50 head, of cattle/ SOO sheepj/'and ;50'; pigs daily} and this with tho killinst /whieh was still. to. ; bo tarried; on at the. Meat .Export,. Gear Company, ahdV Banks.'Company's ; /wbrks' ;would be suffioieht: to meet 1 the' requirements, ef Wellington for. many • years to come. " The 'cost /of tho. buildings, etc., had been provided for by. a loan ot ' £1!,000, and. tho whole, arrangement, T.-oiks,. yards, driunago, water, supply, . . .and eleotrio - power had been carried-, out at a:c6st; of about X 13,700, so :that the engineer had, it would ,ba.seen, : kept-:.well 'within/his Estimate.The : , ebrporation '/wotild. 'not /be 'finished. with the butchei's' aftcr/fhe; meat, the abattoir—• under the Reorganised City Sanitation Department thd'/ council's, inspefttors • would. still .Jteep an" ejo/ 1 on.; the /'meat/, when , it, reached; town. When- - the / abattoir ' EChenie.- wss first formu-. lated, ex-Councillor Evans had done a great amount *cf :• .work to. . help it along, and the same ' : remark •. applied . to .- cx-Councillpr, 1 Murdoch.-' « Messrs.; Mftc'd and ■ Nicholson.; cbntractors for;: thevmain .work' had//done/, their work': well,;; and;, eo .had tho.: ironwork/ .'contfaitWs, : Messrs; /. Hutcheson aiid Campbell.With Mr. ■ Mackley in - charge of-the .works, the speaker .thought /the. public w6uld bo well satisficd' witK 'tho/undertaking. -

v Councillor Cohen took the opportunity of congratnlating the Oity Eiigineer ou. the woy his part of: the work had been carried out. > After . tho health: ot tho - main'- contractors (Messrs! Macs aid Nichbisoh); and that of ,-the iron-work: contractors "(Messrs. Hutiheson-;. arid Campbell)' had beM-. dranki'Mr."- C; 'J.'lkakcs, head of the . Live . Stock. Division of tho Agricultural Department, said- ho had seen abattoirs in; most/partsVof ■;tho: world, . but/:'foj practical; working'/ purposes.-:? ind'-. sanitation these works - wero as good as conld 1 be found anywhere;:-/'. He;; specially congratulated , the City/ Engineer- on yhp,/ excellencOfcOt the':'w6rk..-/ Councillor ShirtcJiiK, in* tho hfolth of - the City EflgiifectS'ijaijd»ttiMrita l this (work . as; in everything. he.imdertook Mr.' Mortolr/had 'dono excellent work;. ...

; In reply, Mr.' Morton said -he did not wish them, to ".think he had done, everything off his own bat., Ho had received loyal assistance from llr. Stone, who - had .watched the' .progress fit- tie, work ■ for the Engineering Department, ■ and i'? Mr. clerk., of .-/Works;. /However, ho thought tho work would, be found to - be satisfactory, and: that, as one speaker had said, the • works would be little tho worse for wear twenty-hve years hence. ::: Councillor ■ Hindmarsh drew attention to tho fact that although the 'pigwas tho dirtiest animal handled in an abattoir, and, pork. was more: liabld. to diseaso. than any othor. meat food, any farmer could kill a pig and send it to town .for 1 sale : without, putting it:through the abattoir. He did not think this was right, and urged; that an etlort ehenld bo made to have -pigs 'brought' nnderiitho Act. . . ? . . A voice: Would his Worship the Mayor ask Mr. Keakes if that is a fact. . ? : .. >. > . Mr. Beakes replied that any bona fido farmer could kill not more 1 than, nvo pigs and send them to. the. city /for. sale. . v.: // }; l 1 v .' -Tho questioner: Then what is the use of the abattoir, and all .these regulation!!? ■ •i-'Mr. Keakes: That/is . a qdostion-for the gentlsmeu who make'the laws.. .. '■ The' Mayor, said it ■: was /quite: true., thit''at present pork could': como into tho city. He considered, it an . outrago that they should build, abattoirs-like this,, and thnt pork, ,which was:so .liable to disease,.should not bo forced to :go through' the abattoir. The matter had not beon .overlooked, however, and ho had a solemnassurance w that < the>- was going -into the point, which would be attended to almost immediately. •- ; : /v'" /:i^-/' 1