A B A B A The Edinburgh abattoir, erected in 1851 by the corpora tion, from designs prepared by Mr David Cousin, the city architect, is the best as regards both construction and management in the United Kingdom. It occupies an area of four acres and a quarter, surrounded by a screen-wall, from which, along the greater part of its length, the build ings are separated by a considerable open space. Opposite 2. Edinburgh Slaughter-Houses. A. Central Roadway. B. Slaughtering liooths. C. Cattle Sheds. D. Enclosed Yards. K. Well. F. Steam-Engine. G Raised Water Tank. H. Tripery. I. Pig-slaughtering House. K. Court for Cattle. L. Sheds. M. Blood House, now Albumen Factory. the principal gateway is a double row of buildings, extend ing in a straight line to about 376 feet in length, with a central roadway (marked AA in the annexed plan), 25 feet wide. There are three separate blocks of building on each side of the roadway, the central one being 140 feet in length, and the others 100 feet each cross-roads 18 feet wide separating the blocks. These ranges of building, as well as two smaller blocks that are placed transversely behind the eastern central block, are divided into compart ments, numbering 42 in all, and all arranged on the same plan. Next the roadway is the slaughtering-booth (BB), 18 feet by 24, and 20 feet in height, and behind this is a shed (CC) 18 feet by 22, where the cattle are kept before being slaughtered. All the cattle are driven into these sheds by a back-entrance, through the small enclosed yards (DD). The large doors of the booths are hung by balance weights, and slide up and down, so as to present no obstruction either within the booth or outside. By a series of large ventilators along the roof, and by other contrivances, the slaughtering-booths are thoroughly ventilated. Great pre cautions have been used to keep rats out of the buildings. To effect this, the booths are laid with thick well-dressed pavement, resting on a stratum of concrete 12 inches thick, and the walls, to the height of 7 feet, are formed of solid ashlar; the roadways, too, are laid with concrete, and causewayed with dressed whinstone pavement; and the drainage consists entirely of glazed earthenware tubes. The ground on which the abattoir is built was previously connected with a distillery, and contains a well 100 feet deep (E), which, with the extensive system of tunnels attached to it, provides the establishment with an abundant supply of pure water. By means of a steam-engine (F), introduced in 1872, the wr.ter is pumped up into a raised tank (G), whence it is distributed to the different booths and sheds, as well as for scouring the roadways and drains. The steam from the engine is utilised in heating water for the numerous cast-iron tanks required in the operations of cleansing and dressing the tripery (H) and pig slaugh tering-house (I). By an ingenious arrangement of rotary brushes driven by the steam-engine, the inven tion of Mr Rutherford, the superintendent, the tripe is dressed in a superior manner, and at greatly less cost than by the tedious and troublesome method of hand- cleaning. By the Edinburgh Slaughter-Houses Act of 1850, tha management is vested in the city authorities. Booths are let at a statutory rent of 8 each per annum, and, in addition to this, gate-dues are payable for every beast entering the establishment. The present rates for tenants of booths are 1-^d. for an ox or cow, fd. for a calf or pig, and ^d. for a sheep. Common booths are provided for butchers who are not tenants, on payment of double gate-dues. The city claims the blood, gut, and manure. The tripe and feet are dressed for the trade without extra charge. The blood was formerly collected in large casks, and dis posed of for manufacturing purposes. This necessitated the storage of it for several days, causing in warm weather a very offensive effluvium. It even happened at times, when there was little demand for the commodity, that the blood had to be sent down the drains. All nuisance is now avoided, and the amount received annually for the blood has risen from between 200 and 450 to from 800 to 1200, by a contract into which Messrs Smith and Forrest of Manchester have entered with the city authorities, to take over the whole blood at a fixed price per beast. They have erected extensive premises and apparatus at their own cost, for extracting from the blood the albumen, for which there is great demand in calico-printing, and for converting the clot into manure. In connection with the establishment is a boiling-house, where all meat unfit for human food is boiled down and destroyed. The number of carcases seized by the inspec tor, and sent to the boiling-house, during the 5^- years ending with the close of 1872, amounted to 1449, giving a weight of upwards of 400,000 pounds. Before the erection of these buildings, private slaughter houses were scattered all over the city, often in the most populous districts, where, through want of drainage and imperfect ventilation, they contaminated the whole neigh bourhood. Since the opening of the public abattoir, all private slaughtering, in the city or within a mile of it, is strictly prohibited. Few of the provincial towns in Great Britain have as yet followed the example of London and Edinburgh. In some instances improvements on the old system have been adopted, but Great Britain is still not only far behind her foreign neighbours in respect of abattoirs, but has even been excelled by some of her own dependencies. In America abattoirs are numerous, and at Calcutta and other towns in British India, the meat markets present a very creditable appearance from their cleanliness and systematic arrangement. (c. N. B.) ABAUZIT, FIEMIN, a learned Frenchman, was born of Protestant parents at Uzes, in Lauguedoc, in 1679. His father, who was of Arabian descent, died when ho was but two years of age ; and when, on the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, the authorities took steps to have him educated in the Roman Catholic faith, his mother contrived his escape. For two years his brother and he lived as fugitives in the mountains of the Cevennos, but they at last reached Geneva, where their mother after wards joined them on escaping from the imprisonment in which she was held from the time of their flight. Abauzit s youth was spent in diligent study, and at an early age he acquired great proficiency in languages, physics, and theology. In 1698 he travelled into Holland, and there became acquainted with Bayle, Jurieu, and Basnage. Proceeding to England, he was introduced to Sir Isaac Newton, who found in him one of the earliest defenders
of the great truths his discoveries disclosed to the world.
