THE GARONNE’S SHIPMENT OF FROZEN MEAT.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LVI, Issue 6493, 19 December 1881, Page 5

THE GARONNE’S SHIPMENT OF FROZEN MEAT.

The arrival of the Garonne, with 4733 carcases of sheep on board, was looked forward to with considerable interest. She arrived at Plymouth late on Oct. 23, and was boarded first thing on the following morning, and when tho chambers were entered the meat was found to be in splendid condition Immediately inside the door of the first chamber the glass registered 24 deg Fahr, but this spot was the least cold throughout the whole of the chambers. The Garonne bad experienced heavy weather in the Bay of Biscay, and had rolled heavily. Consequently the carcases had become disarrange:?, and had fallen one on the top of tho other, where they were frozen tightly together. In the larger chamber were several glasses, the lowest registering 15 deg Fahr. In some parts of the chamber, where the moisture had congealed and fallen, the deck was covered with snow to a depth of live or six inches Ice crystals were hanging overhead in many instances several inches in length, and the appearance of the chamber was picturesque in the extreme. The machinery worked admirably, and too chief engineer of the Garonne expresses his entire satisfaction with it. There wore 130 passengers on board, and they and the crew were regularly fed with the refrigerated meat, the saloon passengers being similarly provided for. >'ot the slightest discolouration was discernible, nor was any other fault detected. All on board expressed themselves thoroughly pleased with the condition of the meat. ' On the arrival of the vessel in London a portion of the meat was at once placed on the marke f . and it sold, we are informed, at from 4|d to 6d per lb. About ICOO carcases are still for disposal, and these are kept in tho refrigerator at the Sojal Albert Docks until they can bo sold at a fair profit. Complaints are heard in some quarters of the smallness of tho mutton, and hopes are entertained that the companies engaged in the trade in Australia w ill make a point of sending over only tho finest sheep, as it is these which realise the largest figure and which give the most profit. We are glad to learn from the wholesale dealers that the butchers are taking to the meat more kindly than they have done before. We looked in at the market on Saturday, Oct. 29, and found the wholesale butcher selling legs and neck together retail at (>d per lb. It was put up to a kind of auction, but none went below this figure, and legs by themselves were charged at the rate of Sd and shoulders at Bid per lb. —European Mail.