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102
UNSOUND FOOD.
The following case showed extensive dealings in unsound food by
Eating House proprietors who advertise themselves as purveyors of
cheap food for the people:—
Canned Meat and Soup. Seizure and Prosecution (Mr. Long's Report).
On the fourteenth of June last information was brought to the
office by Inspector Langstone, of the Shoreditch Borough Council,
that a quantity of meat and soup had been deposited in a lock-up
shed in Montague Street, Borough, which food was bad and quite
unfit for human consumption. I went at once to the shed and found
that it was nearly filled with cases containing tins; and leaving
them in charge of Mr. Howes and Mr. Jenkinson, I went to Tower
Bridge Court and obtained a warrant to search the premises.
Upon returning, we proceeded to examine the contents of the tins,
and found that they contained beef in soup in a most foul and
decomposing condition, and quite unfit for human food. Of this
kind there were 25 cases and two sacks, containing altogether 330
tins, each tin containing about 10 lbs. In the other 35 cases there
were 210 tins, each containing about 14 lbs. of minced meat in an
equally unsound state, and unfit for food. I had the whole of them
removed in two vans to the Manor Place Depot, and on the
following morning I had them conveyed before the Magistrate and
condemned. They were subsequently destroyed.
The whole of this meat had been brought from 31, St. John's
Road, Shoreditch, where it had been deposited in a shed at the rear
of a common lodging house belonging to James Shuttleworth, the
reputed owner of several large eating houses in various parts of
London.
On the 24th of July three summonses were taken out as follows:
the first against James Shuttleworth, of 112, Pitfield Street, Hoxton,
because the meat belonged to him at the time of the deposit; the
second was against Edward Bowman, of 184, Kingsland Road,
because the meat was in his possession at the time of the deposit;
and the third was against Sarah Maney, of 317, Borough High Street,
as the person to whom the premises belonged where the meat was
found. This course being the only safe one to secure a conviction.
In addition to the above five witnoss summonses were necessary
against Mr. Bowman, Mrs. Maney, a man of the name of Ashton,
another named Dodge, and Mr. Lamprell, of 227 Borough High
Street, the landlord of the shed. A special witness summons was