MUTTON FOR MEN, MUTTON FOR TALLOW, AND MUTTON FOR DOGS.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 3070, 19 March 1892, Page 5 (Supplement)

MUTTON FOR MEN, MUTTON FOR TALLOW, AND MUTTON FOR DOGS.

The fifty or bo carcases exhibited by Messrs Nelson Bros. iind Co. at the ram fair yesterday may be broadly classified under the three headings given above. If we had not been assured that every carcase was taken from sheep Bent to Tomoana to be frozen, we could well have believed that Mr Nelson had scoured the provincial district to sret a collection of Bheep unsuitable for freezing. Tbe majority of the carcases literally t( spoke for themselves, " but if the unskilled stranger desired special information not traceable in the sheep themselves, Mr Hogg, who had been at Tomoana since the interception ®f the works there, was present to give it. The carcases were exhibited in a number of pens covered with canvas. In the first were a row of what looked like skinned do°"s -which had gone without a meal foi a week before being killed. These wore representatives of 120 rejected Romney Marsh limbs, part, of a large mob sent for f"cezincr. Thorn was not a bit of fat on them, and very little lean. Tliay w<-rp (.imply framework of bono covered v\ itti iute"uinent like red parchment, through which davlisht could be_ clearly seen. With a lighted caudle in each they 1 would have made good substitutes for I Chinese lanterns. They weighed from 161b to 201b. It seemed almost incredible Unit any practical sheep farmer could send such sheep to bo frozen and they called forth a suggestion that came some " new chum " atlihe business. " No, " replied Mr Hogg, '• they came from one of our large ftatiocs managed by a man with a good many years experience.', •' \\liy where they frozen' " was the next query, " To show how very badly inferior mutton thaws. It is all nonsense that any exnert can have frozen sheep palmed off on him as prime English. You see that lot there. They are first class sheep and it would be hard to beat the quality of the mutton. But compnro t.hem with the other lot along side, •which ha7o not, boon frozen. It does not tako an expert to tell the difference.- And sooth to sny, unpleasant, as it may sound the appearance of the carcase bore out all Mr Hogg said. The frozen sheep in thawing "et a moist appearance, the colour being 3 somewhat, " washed out, quite ditferent to the dry and briurht appearance of the unfrozen animal. But if this were noticeable in tho best sheep it was far mora so in thocase of inferior ones. Other lambs were shown as rejected because ot bruises received in driving, and others because, though suitable in weight (about 35)1b and quality of mutton, the meat was unevenly distributed, the backs bo-, in" bare. Then some capital Lincoln lambs were shown, 271b to 3511) in weight nicely covered in all parts, 'iheso were graded as first-class. Wo may here mention Mr Nelson's object in exhibiting tho sheep was not merely to show what very unsuitable animals are often sent to Tomoana, but to show to sheep farmers in a practical fashion tho_ principles adopted at Tomoana in grading mutton. This year all sheep will be strictly graded for tho first time. Several other leading freezing companies, as well as Messrs. Nelson Bros., are adopting the same plan and it would be well for the reputation of our mutton if all companies agreed to do likewise.' Weight and quality are of, course, the main factors borne in mind in grading. Theso are a number of classes. One will represent sheep of first quality, from 501b to 651b ; other sheep of similar qualisy but lighter than 581b or over 651b ; other sheep of similar weights and so on. A butcher will then know precisely whac he is ordering. Up till now the English butcher sending for New Zealand mutton has been much in the position of a man buying a pig in a poke. " Send thirty carcases miijlit be _ the order Thirty averaging 90lb each might bo sent and another thirty averaging 501b : they might be all first diss or all second class in quality ; or the thirty might represent carcases varying from 501b to 901b and of three different qualities of mutton. I This was proved a great drawback, aud hence the adoption of a rigid system of grading. In one pen were shown mm: sheep of excellent quality , but either too li»ht or too heavy six were graded as second-class and only three as first class. In au adjoining pen were exhibited sheep of all Bizes and varing qualities, to show how they have been shipped in tho past without grading. Some comeback carcarcases were shown. They were not too dark in colour and narrow in tho shoulder , and although past they were classed as inferior though of cuitable weights. Another peu had haugiug in it sheep from the same mob, Lincoln and crossbred, because uuder 501b or over7slb in weight —the minimum and maximum adopted under the grading system. Some of them scaled up to 971b, and though the meat was of excellent quality the oarcases were so overburdened with fat as to be unfittedfor the English market. Above the tails were huge lumps of solid fat. The boiliug down vat will receive them. If they had been sent when about half as fat they would have been excellent freezers, though rather on the heavy side. It seemed strange to see alongside, taken from the same mob, a big-framed auimal weighing only 401b, and with the bonc-a showing through a mere film of flesn. Sheep weighing up to 13Slb were in the same mob. The last pen was the most instructive of all in some respects. It consisted of sheep rejectsd of various reasons. Oue exhibited unmistakeable lung disease ; this could not bo detected until the animal was killed. But another which a rupture had caused a huge outgrowth of caul fat, should never have been sent to the works ; the walk of the animal would show what was the matter with it. The meat might be just as good as in a sound sheep, but the carcase couftl not be cold with such a growth, audit could not be removed without mutilation. A third, owing to an injury to a organ, had au immense accumulation of internal fat. More extraordinary still were three sheep with the fat of a deep yellow colour. If they had been rubbed with yellow ochre the hue could not have been more pronounced. Even the lean was altered in colour. These These were all Linclons and from the same station similar sheep have been received for the last five years. There are only a few of thorn in a large mob and as the sheep fanners present differed widely in their estimates of the causes of the yellowness

we will not attempt any explanation. Apart from this remarkable defect, the sheep were in veiy fair condition, though too l.iu, ami thi< seemed to negative any idea of disease. Mr Hogg informed us that the ve.llow sheep—not so yellow as those sh'"wn but >ull ?o discoloured as to cause their rejection-are common in Romney Marsh Hocks,sometimes averaging 10 per wet of a diatt, but. tbcv are rare in Lincoln*, and he did not profess to aeoount for the extraordinary appearance cf these particular sheep, beyond a suggestion that it might be due to what answers to biliousness in human beings. Altogether the exhibition was a remarkable one,as showing <vhat varying ideas sheepfarmers haveas to what constitutes aaheep fit for freezing. Some of those shown were (it for nothing but dogsmeat. The few ounces of tallow they would give if boiled down would not pay for the fuel used in extracting it. We understand that another lot of " samples will be shown to day on on the fair ground and the exhibition is certainly worth a visit.