University of Virginia Library

OF THE EXPERIENCE OF A HAWKING
BUTCHER.

A middle-aged man, the front of his head being
nearly bald, and the few hairs there were to be
seen shining strongly and lying tflat, as if rubbed
with suet or dripping, gave me the following
account. He was dressed in the usual blue garb
of the butcher: —

"I've hawked, sir — well, perhaps for fifteen
years. My father was a journeyman butcher,
and I helped him, and so grew up to it. I never
had to call regular work, and made it out with
hawking. Perhaps I've hawked, take it alto-
gether, nearly three quarters of every year. The
other times I've had a turn at slaughtering.
But I haven't slaughtered for these three or
four years; I've had turns as a butcher's porter,
and wish I had more, as it's sure browns, if it's
only 1s. 6d. a day: but there's often a bit of
cuttings. I sell most pork of anything in
autumn and winter, and most mutton in
summer; but the summer isn't much more than
half as good as the winter for my trade. When I
slaughtered I had 3s. for an ox, 4d. for a sheep,
and 1s. for a pig. Calves is slaughtered by the
master's people generally. Well, I dare say it
is cruel the way they slaughter calves; you
would think it so, no doubt. I believe they
slaughter cheaper now. If I buy cheap — and
on a very hot day and a slow market, I have
bought a fore, aye, and a hind, quarter of mut-
ton, about two and a half stone each (8 lbs.
to the stone), at 2d. a pound; but that's
only very, very seldom — when I buy cheap
sir, I aim at 2d. a pound over what I give, if
not so cheap at 1d., and then its low to my
customers. But I cut up the meat, you see,
myself, and I carry it. I sell eight times as
much to public-houses and eating-houses as
anywhere else; most to the publics if they've
ordinaries, and a deal for the publics' families'
eating, 'cause a landlord knows I wouldn't
deceive him, — and there's a part of it taken
out in drink, of course, and landlords is good
judges. Trade was far better years back.
I've heard my father and his pals talk about
a hawking butcher that twenty years ago was
imprisoned falsely, and got a honest lawyer to
bring his haction, and had 150l. damages for
false imprisonment. It was in the Lord
Mayor's Court of Equity, I've heard. It was
a wrong arrest. I don't understand the par-
ticulars of it, but it's true; and the damages
was for loss of time and trade. I'm no
lawyer myself; not a bit. I have sold the like
of a loin of mutton, when it was small, in a
tap-room, to make chops for the people there.
They'll cook chops and steaks for a pint of beer,
at a public; that is, you must order a pint — but
I've sold it very seldom. When mutton was
dearer it was easier to sell it that way, for I
sold cheap; and at one public the mechanics —
I hardly know just what they was, something
about building — used to gather there at one
o'clock and wait for Giblets'; so they called me
there. I live a good bit on the cuttings of the
meat I hawk, or I chop a meal off if I can
manage or afford it, or my wife — (I've only a
wife and she earns never less than 2s. a week
in washing for a master butcher — I wish I was
a master butcher, — and that covers the rent) —

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my wife makes it into broth. Take it all the
year round, I s'pose I sell three stun a day
(24 lb.), and at 1d. a pound profit. Not a
farthing more go round and round. I don't
think the others, altogether, do as much, for
I'm known to a many landlords. But some
make 3s. and 4s. a day oft enough. I've made
as much myself sometimes. We all aim at 1d. a pound profit, but have to take less in hot
weather sometimes. Last year 4d. the pound has
been a haverage price to me for all sorts."

"Dead salesmen," as they are called — that is,
the market salesmen of the meat sent so largely
from Scotland and elsewhere, ready slaughtered
— expressed to me their conviction that my
informant's calculation was correct, and might
be taken as an average; so did butchers. Thus,
then, we find that the hawking butchers, taking
their number at 150, sell 747,000 lbs. of meat,
producing 12,450l. annually, one-fourth being
profit; this gives an annual receipt of 83l. each,
and an annual earning of 20l. 15s. The capital
required to start in this trade is about 20s., which
is uaually laid out as follows: — A basket for the
shoulders, which costs 4s. 6d.; a leathern strap,
1s.; a basket for the arm, 2s. 6d.; a butcher's
knife, 1s.; a steel, 1s. 6d.; a leather belt for the
waist to which the knife is slung, 6d.; a chop-
per, 1s. 6d.; and a saw, 2s.; 6s. stock-money,
though credit is sometimes given.