SLAUGHTERING FEES

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 699, 26 June 1929, Page 13

SLAUGHTERING FEES

GCTY COUNCIL SUES BUTCHER m | MM vTYnKtiißi* vSi I lABILITY for stauflphftMsng fees on pigs killed • licensed slaughterhouse, and not at the Auckland City Abattoirs at Westfield, and subsequently sold as bacon in the city, was dis puted by Fred. Harrison, a pork butcher and bacon curer, trading as the Hydra Bacon Factory, in the Supreme Court today. Harrison was sued, before Mr. J««tiee Kennedy, by the Auckland CityCouncil for £142 for fees for bacon cured and sold in Auckland from 11,000 pigs he had had slaughtered in the Auckland Farmers’ Meat Company’s slaughterhouse at Southdown. Defendant agreed to pay the fees on fresh pork obtained from pigs killed at Southdown. His defence to the claim was ihat the abattoirs were not available to deal with pigs as he required them. Mr. A. H. Johnstone represented tho plaintiffs, and Mr. B. P. Leary appeared for defendant. Robert William Rugs, manager of the abattoirs at "Westfield, said that when he took the position in 1921 there were no facilities for treatment of bacon. Consequently the greater proportion of the bacon consumed in Auckland was brought from Wellington and Palmerston North. In the next three years the abattoirs were completely equipped for handling pigs- Harrison had pigs slaughtered there until October. 1926. Supplies of pigs coming into the abattoirs daily were invariably cleared out the same day. He declared that there were ample facilities available to deal with defendant s Pigs- . . . In March, 1926, Harrison inquired as to the possibility of procuring runners from stock slaughtered on his behalf, but as the council had entered into a contract to supply runners, this was impossible. Harrison removed his slaughtering from th€> abattoirs to procure the runners, and expressed regret at having to do so. Pigs killed at the abattoirs in tb« past three years, said witness, were: —- 1925-26. 60,000; 1926-27, 46,000; 1*2728, 51.000; I*2B-29, 61,000. (Proceeding.)