A TELL-TALE PICTURE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1067, 4 March 1911, Page 5

A TELL-TALE PICTURE.

, 'ALLEGED CRUELTY .TO CATTLE.

Tho advertising .which New Zealand gets, through .its,. illustrated, weekly papers- is often spoken of with satisfaction,'but the camera and the process block may also gi.vo a wide publicity to unpleasant things. .. Some.' timo ago one of the illustrated .papers published a, picture of a, bullock' being hoisted on board a small coasting, steamer at . some New. Zealand, -port. This picture was reproduced in a Canadian paper, the Toronto "Sunday World.'i. Thero it wii'f, brought to the notice of the local Humane Society, tho opinion being held that tho method of slinging the bullock by a rope-round its bod}-, with a knot that looks, in the picture, like a slip-knot, wasi a 1 cruel one. The secretary of the Toronto-Humane Society sent tho picture to Mr. Edward . Fairholme, .secretary;.fo.'the.Royal Society for the Prevention 9f Cruelty to Animals, London,'who, in turn, forwarded it to " the S';P.C.A., -in' Wellington, ; In .a -covering lettet Mr. I'airholmo says:—' . -; - - ■

"If ..the picture is correct, I am inclined to agree with my correspondent that; the method-of slinging-heavy-cat-tle by a rope round-ytheir bodies is an tixtretnely cruel one. and . should.. be stopped, if possible. ' Of course, I am awaro.. that at .some places, tho loading and, unloading; or,.cattlo is ■ a:, difficult matter, but I am'glad to.'say/that \io have been - able to stop the practice, which formerly; existed at Gibraltar. and a port on the coast of Africa of slinging catclo by their homs. Tho method depicted in the- illustration seems,almost, if not quite, as cruel, and I. hope that it. is. not the general'practice. If, on tho other hand,, it is a method largely inuso, I should, if j-ou wish it, be only too glad to back up any representation -yaj\ may see fit to make in the 'hope of getting proper accommodation for -the humane loadin<* and unloading of. cattle.'.' Mr. C. W: •Carroll,- : t : he secretary of the Wellington branch of tho S.P.C.A. informed a representative of Tire Domi.vion that the . matter had received the attention, of,"tho society when tho picture first appeared in New-Zealand, and ■■ inquiries-wore made, but tho society was unable to obtain enough definite evidence to enable action to be taken. Tho letter will come before the next meeting of tho society.