BUTCHER, a word of uncertain derivation, signifies a person who slaughters cattle for the table, or for sale. In London there are two sorts of butchers: carcass butchers, who kill meat in large quantities, and sell it out to others, called retail-butchers, who are dispered ur all out-parts, villages, and towns, near the city.
The company of butchers, although ancient, formed no corporation until the third year of James 1., w hen they were incorporated by the name of masters, wardens, and commonalty of the art and mystery of butchers. Their arms are azure, two axes saltierwise argent, between three boars' heads coupcd, attired] or, a boar's head gules, between two garbes vent.
Several useful laws have been made, at different times, for the purpose of regulating the trade of butchers, and preventing those abuses which they might otherwise be liable to commit.
By the statute 15th Car. 1i. c. 8. no person exercising the trade of a butcher, shall sell, offer, or for sale, any live cattle, on pain of forfeiting. doulth value. 13y 2d and 3d Edw. VI. c. 15. revived and continued by 22d and 23d Car. II. c. 19. now expired, if any butchers shall conspire not to sell their victuals, but at certain prices, they are liable, for the first offence, to a forfeiture of 101. to the king, or twenty days imprisonment, with bread and water only ; for the second offence, 20/. or the
pillory ; and for the third offence, 40/. or pillory, with the loss of an ear and infamy. And this offence may be de termined by the sessions or leet. By the ordinance for bakers, &c. butchers selling swine's flesh measled, or flesh dead of the murrain, shall, for the first time, be grievously amerced ; the second time suffer the pillory ; the third time be imprisoned and fined ; and the fourth time forswear the town. (Hawk. Stat. vol. i. p. 181.) By statute 4th Hen. VII. c. 3. no butcher shall slay any beast within any walled town, Carlisle and Berwick ex cepted, under a penalty of I2d. for every ox, and 8d. for every cow or other beast. Butchers shall not kill or sell any meat on Sundays, under a penalty of Gs. 8d. by 3d Car. I. c. 1.
By the statutes 1st Jac. I. c. 22., and 9th Ann. c. 11. regulations are made with regard to the watering, wil fully or negligently gashing of hides, or selling them when gashed, and also to the selling of putrefied or rot ten hides ; to each of which offences different penalties are annexed. By the former statute also, no butcher shall be a tanner or currier, on pain of Gs. 8d. a day. See Jacob's Law Diet. ; and Burn's Justice of the Peace.