SECRETS OF MEAT CURING AND SAUSAGE MAKING TEXT

outside of the thigh until the hind-quarters are raised. After the legs are skinned split the skin of the carcass over the midline from the breast to the rectum. [Illustration: Fig. 5--Beef: Removing the head.] [Illustration: Fig. 6--Beef: Showing manner of unjoining fore leg and skinning shank.] Now begin at the flanks and skin along the midline until the side is nicely started. With a sharp knife held flat against the surface have the hide stretched tightly and remove the skin down over the sides with steady down-strokes of the knife, as shown in Fig. 8. But it is necessary that the hide should be stretched tightly and without wrinkles. Care should be taken to leave a covering of muscles over the abdomen of the carcass as it keeps it better. In siding the beef, it is usual to go down nearly to the back bone, leaving the skin attached at thighs and shoulders; skin over the buttock and as far down on the rump as possible, always avoiding cutting the flesh or tearing the membrane over it. A coarse cloth and a pail of hot water should be at hand while skinning and blood spots wiped quickly from the surface, but the cloth should be nearly dry, as the less water used the better. Open the carcass at the belly and pull the small intestines out at one side. Use a saw or sharp ax in opening the brisket and pelvis. After raising the windpipe and belly and cutting loose the pleura and diaphragm along the lower part of the cavity, the carcass will be ready to raise. [Illustration: Fig. 7--Beef: Unjointing the hind leg.] [Illustration: Fig. 8--Beef: “Siding down;” knife held flat against the tightly stretched skin.] Fig. 9 shows the carcass ready for raising, and Fig. 11 shows the block and tackle rigging attached to the carcass about to be raised. When the carcass is raised to a convenient height, skin the hide over the thigh, rump and hips. While in this position, it is well to loosen the rectum and small intestines and allow them to drop down over the paunch. The fat lining, the pelvis and the kidney fat should not be disturbed nor mutilated. The intestines may be separated from the liver to which they are attached by the use of a knife. The paunch is attached to the back at the left side and may be torn loose. Let it roll on the ground and cut off or draw off the gullet. The carcass at this point is shown in Fig. 11. Now raise the carcass a little higher and take out the liver, having first removed the gall bladder. Now remove the diaphragm, lungs, the heart, and finish skinning over the shoulders, forearms and neck, as shown in Fig. 12. Sponge all the dirt and blood off with a cloth, split the carcass in halves, using a saw, cleaver or sharp ax, wash out the inside of the chest cavity and wipe it dry. [Illustration: Fig. 9--Beef: Ready to raise: Breast, forearms and neck, left covered to protect the meat until the carcass is raised.] [Illustration: Fig. 11--Beef: Removing paunch and intestines.] Trim off all bloody veins and scraggy pieces of the neck and leave the beef to cool before quartering. [Illustration: Fig. 12--Beef: Skinning shoulders and forearms.] [Illustration: 13.--Beef raised out of the way of animals to cool.] Fig. 13 shows the finished carcass hanging high up and cooling. KILLING AND DRESSING MUTTON. If the sheep is an old one, it should be stunned. If a young one, dislocating the neck after cutting the throat serves the same purpose. This is accomplished by placing one hand on top of the head, the other under the chin, and twisting sharply upward. Lay the sheep on its side on a platform, with its head hanging over the end. Grasp the chin in the left hand and stick the knife through the neck back of the jaw, turning the cutting edge of the knife toward the spinal column and cut the flesh to the bone. By so doing it is impossible to cut the windpipe. (See Fig. 14.) [Illustration: Fig. 14--Manner of Sticking a Sheep.] Split the skin over the back of the front leg from the dewclaws a little above the knee. (See Fig. 15.) Open the skin over the windpipe from breast to chin, starting in slightly on the sides of the neck. Split the skin over the back of the hind leg through the middle line and skin the buttock. Raise the skin over the udder or cod and flanks. Skin around the hocks and down to the hoofs, cutting off the feet at the toe joints. Run the knife between the cord and bone on back of the chin and tie the legs together just above the pastern joint. Do not skin the legs above the hock until the carcass is hung up. [Illustration: Fig. 15.--“Legging out” a sheep.] Hang the sheep up by the hind legs, split the skin over the middle line; start at the brisket and “fist off” the skin. This is done by grasping the edge of the pelt firmly in one hand, pulling it up tight and working the other with the fist closed between the pelt and the body, over the fore-quarters downward and upward and backward over the hind-quarters and legs. It is unwise to work down on the skin over the hind legs, as it would rupture the membrane. The wool should always be held away from the flesh as a matter of cleanliness, and the skin on the legs should be pulled away from the carcass rather than toward it. When the pelt has been loosened over sides and back, it should be stripped down over the neck and cut off close to the ears. Remove the head without skinning by cutting through the atlas joint. [Illustration: Fig. 16--Fisting off the Pelt.] GUTTING. Remove the entrails by cutting around the rectum and allowing it to drop down inside, but do not split the pelvis. Open down the belly line from cod or udder to breast bone; take out the paunch and intestines, leaving the liver attached to the diaphragm. It is not best to split the breast. Reach up in the pelvis and pull out the bladder. Wipe all blood and dirt from the carcass with a coarse cloth wrung dry from hot water. Double up the front legs and slip the little cord found by cutting into the fleshy part of the forearms into the ankle joints. [Illustration: Fig. 17.--Removing the intestines of sheep.] KILLING AND DRESSING HOGS. A good sticking knife, hog hook, scrapers, a barrel or a trough for scalding, and a convenient place for working are the important necessities. Set the barrel at the proper slant with the open end against a table or platform of the proper height, with the bottom securely fastened; a strong tackle built for the purpose is desirable, but not necessary. Hogs should not be excited or heated, and in catching and throwing them bruising must be avoided. However, it is not necessary to stun hogs before sticking them. At slaughter houses they are usually hung up by one hind leg. If there is no hoisting appliances, lay the hog on its back and hold it there until stuck. Two men can handle a hog if they will but work with intelligence. By reaching under the animal, one at the fore leg and the other at the hind leg, they can turn a heavy hog on its back easily. One man, standing astride the body, with his feet close against the side and holding its front feet, can control it while the other does the sticking. [Illustration: Fig. 18.--Manner of holding and sticking a hog.] [Illustration: Fig. 19.--Scalding a hog. Note arrangement.] The knife should be eight inches long, straight bladed and narrow, and stuck into the hog’s throat just in front of the breast bone, the point directed toward the root of the tail and held in line with the back bone. This is necessary to prevent cutting between the ribs and the shoulders, which would cause the blood to settle there with waste in trimming of the shoulder. When the knife has been stuck in six or eight inches, according to the size of the hog, turn the knife quickly to one side and withdraw it. The arteries that are to be cut run close together just inside of the breast bone and both are cut when the knife is turned, providing the edges are sharp at the point. The water for scalding when heated in the house should be boiling when removed from the stove. If put into a cold barrel it will be about the right temperature when the hog is ready for scalding. During the scalding process the water should be about 185 to 195 degrees, if the scalding tub holds only enough water to scald one hog. Water at 150 degrees will scald a hog, but, of course, more time is required. In large packing houses where a large tub is used and steam is continually blowing into the water, the water is kept at 150 degrees. Too hot water is likely to cause more trouble than too cold, and for this reason it is always best to have a thermometer at hand. Of course, the temperature may be reduced by putting in a little cold water. A hog should not be scalded before it is dead or the blood in the small blood vessels near the surface of the skin will cook and give a reddish tinge to the carcass. To make the hair easy to remove and to cleanse the skin of the hog and free it from all the greasy filth which forms a scurf on the skin of all hogs, our Hog-Scald should always be used. Hogs scalded with the aid of Hog-Scald do not require so much heat to loosen the hair, it requires much less labor to clean them, and the dressed hogs will look much nicer and the rinds will cure and smoke nicer than when it is not used. No Farmer or Butcher will dress his hogs without Hog-Scald after giving it a trial. For description and price list on Hog-Scald, see page 278. [Illustration: Fig. 20.--A convenient way of hanging up a hog.] While being scalded the carcass should be kept moving constantly to avoid cooking the skin. While scalding, the hog should occasionally be drawn out of the water for air, when the hair may be tried. When both hair and scurf slip easily from the skin, scalding is completed. Remove the carcass from the water and begin scraping. The head and feet should be cleaned first, as they do not clean easily when cold. Use a “candlestick” scraper on the head. Use the hands and a knife if you haven’t this tool. The feet and legs are easily cleaned by grasping them firmly with the hands and twisting them around and back; pull the little bristles of the body by hand and remove the scurf and fine hair with the scraper, long corn knife or other tool. Wash the entire carcass with hot water and shave it with a sharp knife. Insert a stick under the gambrel cords and hang up the hog. Wash down with hot water, shave patches and rinse with cold water. Occasionally the hog is too large to scald in a barrel. Cover it thickly with blankets or sacks containing a little bran, pour hot water over it and the hair will be readily loosened. GUTTING HOGS. Split the hog between the hind legs, separating the bones with a knife. Run the knife down over the belly line, guiding it with the right hand and shielding the point with the lingers of the left hand and thus avoid the danger of cutting the intestines. Split the breast-bone with a knife or an ax and cut down through the sticking place to the chin. Cut around the rectum and pull down until the kidneys are reached, using a knife whenever necessary to sever the cords attached to the back. Do not disturb the kidneys or the fat covering them, excepting in warm weather, when the leaf may be removed to allow quicker and more thorough cooling. Remove the paunch and the intestines. The gall bladder lies in plain sight on the liver, and it lies attached to the diaphragm and hypatic vein. It should be stripped off after starting the upper end with a knife. Avoid spilling the contents on the meat. Insert the fingers under the liver and strip it out. Cut across the artery, running down the backbone, and cut around the diaphragm, removing them with the pluck, that is, heart, lungs, liver and gullet. Open the jaw and insert a small block to allow free drainage. Wash out all blood with cold water, and dry with a coarse cloth. In hot weather the backbone should be split to facilitate cooling. The fat should be removed from the intestines before they get cold. It is strong in flavor and should not be mixed with the leaf lard in rendering. [Illustration: Gutting the Hog] CLEANING CASINGS. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) [Illustration: CLEANING CASINGS] Those who undertake to clean casings have great trouble in getting them white and many resort to lime and other methods for both bleaching them and freeing them of fat. Notwithstanding all such efforts, the casings remain dark and unattractive. The reason for much of this difficulty lies in the fact that the casings are not properly washed and cleaned in the first operation. Casings should be washed thoroughly in three different changes of water. The fat should then be scraped off from the outside. Water must also be run through the casings and they should be turned inside out so that they may become thoroughly washed and cleaned. After casings have been perfectly washed and scraped in this manner, they should be dry-salted by packing them in a liberal quantity of salt. Casings thus cured will remain sweet and white. HANDLING HIDES. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) The proper handling of the hides of slaughtered animals, so as to obtain the best possible prices for them and avoiding excessive shrinkage before they are marketed, is a very important matter and should have the Butcher’s careful attention. In the first place, it should be borne in mind that it is an easy matter to badly damage the hide of an animal before killing by prodding it with a pole. This of course should always be avoided. The killing floor should be kept as clean as possible. If there is blood on the floor and this gets on the hair and remains there, when the hides are stacked up this blood comes in contact with the fleshy side of the hide next to it and will make a spot which gives the hide a very bad appearance. By keeping the hides entirely free from blood, they make a better appearance and bring a better price. The greatest care should be given to the removal of the hide, so they are not scored, as this greatly reduces the value of the hides to the tanner. A good, careful skinner is worth several dollars a week more to the Butcher who kills many animals than a skinner who is careless in his work. (The hide should be so nicely removed from the animal that when it comes to the tanner it should look like it had been planed from the animal, it should be so free from cuts or scores.) PROPER STORAGE OF HIDES. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) This is a point of very great importance. If many hides are kept on hand for any length of time before shipment, the difference in shrinkage between hides which are properly kept and those which are not so stored is very great. The careful storing and handling of hides will always repay the time and trouble necessary, not only in the weight of the hides, but in the condition in which they are marketed. Hides should be kept in as cool a room as possible and all windows and doors should be kept closed, so as to have no circulation of air. SALT TO USE IN SALTING HIDES. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) The best salt to use for this purpose is Crushed Rock Salt. Large lumps of salt are objectionable, on account of leaving indentations in the hides where they are pressed together, which injures their appearance in the eyes of the buyer. One part of Fine Salt to three parts of Crushed Rock Salt makes a fine mixture for salting hides, as the fine salt quickly dissolves and makes a moisture on the hide, which the hide absorbs. When re-using old salt for salting hides, always add about one-third of new salt to it, as this gives much better results. About one-third of the salt used is consumed in salting hides, so by adding one-third additional of fresh salt each time, the supply of salt is kept the same. Always keep the salt as clean as possible. If there is much dirt or manure in it these will discolor the hides and they will not make as good a showing to the buyer. QUANTITY OF SALT TO USE ON HIDES. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) In large Packing Houses about 35 lbs. of salt is used for each hide. The Packers find that by using this quantity they get better results than if a smaller quantity is used. Very few Butchers in the country use as much salt as this on their hides, but they would find it greatly to their advantage to use about 100 lbs. of salt to every three hides, and if the proper quantity of salt is used, as described in the foregoing, it can be used over and over again with a loss of about one-third for each time used. It is much better for the Butcher to invest more money in salt and give the hides a proper amount, as he will thus save on the excessive shrinkage of the hides, which would amount to more than the cost of the salt. HOW TO STACK HIDES WHEN SALTING. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) One of the most important features in salting hides is the way they are stacked when salted. The hides must be so piled that they are perfectly level and the salt must be distributed over every part of the hide. The flesh side should be up, and the salt should be rubbed over them evenly. The hides can be piled about two feet high. The legs of the hide should be kept straight and flat, so the salt gets into all crevices. The edges of the stack of hides should be kept a trifle higher all around than the center of the stack, so the natural moisture that comes out of the hide and the dry salt will remain on them. If the hides are salted on a slanting floor, or if the hides are piled up carelessly so the hides lie slanting, the brine composed of moisture of the green hide and the salt will run off and then the percentage of loss from shrinkage will be large. HOW LONG TO CURE HIDES. Hides should lie in the pack and salt for 25 to 30 days, so as to be fully cured and ready for shipment. TRIMMING OF GREEN HIDES. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) Before the hides are salted the switches should be cut off of the tail and all loose ends of the hide should be cut off. The butt of the ears should also be split; if the hides go into the pack without attention to this point, it makes the pack very uneven on account of the thickness of the ear, and the salt does not have a chance to properly penetrate the ears, and they are liable to spoil. Loose pieces of meat that are carelessly left on the hides and all excessive fat should be trimmed off. Hides must not be salted until five hours or longer after the animal is killed, and they must not be piled closely, as this would prevent the animal heat from escaping. If hides are salted with the animal heat in them, very often the hair will slip, which will make No. 2 hides. SALTING SWITCHES. Switches should be spread out on the floor so they will thoroughly cool off. After they are thoroughly cool, they can be piled into a heap and salt applied so they are entirely covered. The more salt put over them the better, as they spoil very easily. TANNING SKINS. (_Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden._) [Illustration: TANNING SKINS] Butchers can easily tan the skins of Sheep, Goats, Cattle and Calves with Tanaline, and they can often pick up fine skins of wild animals, which can also be easily tanned. By tanning the fancy skins that the Butcher frequently can get, he can sell them for three or four times as much as he would realize when sold to the Hide Buyer. DIRECTIONS FOR TANNING SKINS. First:--After weighing the skins, soak them in plain cold water; fresh or salted skins for 24 hours, and air dried skins for at least 48 hours. Then scrape off all the fat with a dull instrument, such as a putty knife or sharp piece of hard wood. Then wash thoroughly, with cold water, both sides of the skin. Second:--Use, for every 30 pounds of skins, a 2-pound package of Tanaline and 4 pounds of salt. Dissolve 2 pounds of Tanaline and 4 pounds of salt in 5 to 6 gallons of cold water, and when thoroughly