Mr. Wharton to Mr.
Terrell
.
Department
of State,
Washington
,
May 11,
1891
.
No. 134.]
Sir: I inclose herewith for your information a copy
of a letter from the Secretary of Agriculture concerning the requirement of
the Belgian Government that carcasses of dressed beef imported into Belgium
from the United States of America shall be accompanied by the lungs of the
animals attached to said carcasses.
As this requirement is, in the opinion of the Department of Agriculture, a
virtual prohibition of the importation of dressed beef into Belgium from
this country, you are instructed to make appropriate representation to the
Belgian Government on the subject and to report the result to this
Department.
I am, etc.,
William F. Wharton,
Acting Secretary.
[Inclosure in No. 134.]
Mr. Rusk to Mr.
Blaine
.
Department of Agriculture,
Washington
,
April 25, 1891.
(Received May 7.)
Sir: I have the honor to inform you that I am
advised that the Government of Belgium requires that carcasses of
dressed beef imported into that country from the United States shall be
accompanied by the lungs of the animals, attached to said carcasses.
This requirement is a virtual prohibition of the importation into Belgium
of dressed beef from this country. The object which Belgium had in
requiring the lungs to accompany the animal was no doubt a sanitary
measure, to enable the officers of that Government to determine, upon
the arrival of the carcass, whether the animal had been affected with
any disease of the lung.
The enactment by the Congress of the United States of the act of March 3,
1891, which provides for the inspection of all animals slaughtered for
export to foreign countries and requires both an ante-mortem and a
post-mortem examination, the carcasses of the animals to be accompanied
by a certificate of healthfulness by inspectors of the United States and
said carcasses to be properly labeled for purposes of identification,
should be sufficient grounds for an application to the Government of
Belgium to remove this restriction.
I have to advise you that the work of inspection of meat products has
been commenced by this Department under the regulations prescribed of
date March 25, 1891, and that the carcasses of all dressed beef now
being exported to foreign countries from the United States will be
accompanied by a certificate of healthfulness and be properly tagged for
purposes of identification.
In view of this, I have to request that the attention of our minister at
Brussels be called to the matter, and that he be directed to present
these facts to the Government of Belgium with a view of securing the
removal of the restriction referred to above.
I have, etc.,
