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64
At the time of arrival the refrigerating stores situated within the district
of the Port of London Sanitary Authority was unusually full of meat, and
the Port of London Authority would not find accommodation for these pigs,
notwithstanding that the importers offered to the Port of London Authority
an equivalent amount of accommodation in their own cold stores situate within
the City of London in exchange for accommodation in the Dock refrigerating
stores for the pigs.
As it was impossible to keep the carcasses on board the ship, they were
allowed to proceed to the importers' refrigerating stores situated in the City
of London, they signing an undertaking that the pigs would not be removed
from thence until they had been examined by the Medical Officer of Health
for the City of London, and permission given in writing to do so.
Although the carcasses bore a label attached at the place of slaughter,
stating that each carcass had been examined and found free from disease, it
was apparent that the lymphatic glands about the throat had not been
incised and examined, and in order that the examination of the carcasses
should be thorough, it was necessary to thaw them out. This was done as
they were required for the market, and Dr. Collingridge, the Medical Officer
of Health for the City of London, has furnished me with the following
results of the examination :—
The s.s. "Anglian" arrived on the 2nd February from the United States
with, amongst other meat, 300 frozen pig carcasses. These were frozen so
hard that it was impossible to properly examine them for disease. Therefore
5 per cent. of the bulk were thawed, and, as a result of the examination,
lymphatic glands were found to be missing from two carcasses.
It was therefore decided to examine the remainder, but the preliminary
thawing was objected to by the consignees on the ground of damage. They
were therefore given the alternative of returning them to the United States,
but before the ship sailed they decided to have the carcasses examined. For
this purpose the heads were removed and the carcasses split.
The result of the examination was that a further 13 carcasses were found to
have been deprived of the lymphatic glands, and in addition one was affected
with tuberculosis.
The removal of the lymphatic glands is presumptive evidence of tuberculosis,
as in the absence of this disease there is no necessity whatever for such
removal.
Received at the wharf 4,641
Passed as fit for food 4,250
Condemned as unfit for food 391
Percentage - 8.4 per cent.