Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-02-02
Sanitary Subjects.
FOUL GASES.

At a meeting of the Board of Health, last
night, all the members present, with DR.. Verdi
in the chair. The special committee, to whom
was referred the petition of citizens to abate
the gas nuisance in the neighbOrhOOd of G
and 9th streets made report, in which they
state that the nuisance consists of the escape
of sulphuretted hydrogen gas and napthaline
amaline vaporS which arise from the imper-
feet apparatus, used for condensing the va
pors, set free in the manufacture of sulphate
of ammonia an imperfect apparatus for manu-
facture of coal tar: large quantities of ammo
mated liquor in receiving tanks, thus forming
three sources of obnoxious gases, which is
the cause of complaint. To avoid these eS-
capeS of ammonia, the committee recommend
that the proprietors be required to adjust
suitable condenser. to make more rapid work
the instant the gases appear. The gases
from the coal tar may be nearly abated by
requiring the ,proprietors to adjust such APP
paratuS as will either condenSe the VaporS or
carry them off to distance in the upper air as
to be beyond inhalation. The gas company is
responsible for the maintenance OF the tanks
containing the ammoniated liquor, and the
committee recommend that it he required to
construct receptaces for this liquor, to prevent
the escape of the volatile substances now SO
obnoxious to the citizens. The report was
adopted.
WHAT CHEAP TEA IS MADE OF.
A communication was received from +. Nj.
Schaeffer, Nj. d.. giving the result of a micro
ScOpical examination of a sample of the green
tea submitted to him by the board of health.
after chemical analysis had been made by
the Agricultural department. A quantity of
this green tea was found offered for sale at an
auction store on 18th street, in pound packages,
for thirty cents each and black tea was sold
for twenty-five cents per pound. The green
tea. under the microscope, was found to con-
SlSt Of: " l. A fine dust, composed of the frag-
mentS of tea leaves. 2. A large proportion of
blue and yellow pigment. scattered in fine
grains through the whole powder, some of
them large enough to be visible to the naked
eye. 8. A small proportion of fine white sand.
both angular and rounded, principally the for
mer. f. An exceedingly minute powder, APP
parently of mineral character. and of such
an appearance as would be presented by an
which it is known are sometimes fraudulently
added to tea to increase its weight. The blue
pigment, on being Isolated, gave the charac-
acteriStic reactions of fenOcyanide of iron
Prussian blue). The yellow pigment was of
two kinds: First. fine crystalline substance
insolube in water and benzole, whose chemi,
cal nature was not determined: and, second,
some kind of dye-w0Od ground very fine, and
OF bright yellow color. These blue and vel
low particles are not confined to the powdered
portion of the tea, but could be seen with lens
adhering to the leaves all through the entire
article. and are undoubtedly added to give the
tea color, the effect of minute particles of these
cOlOrS lntermingled being as is well known.
to produce green tint to the eye. The tea is.
therefore, the result of one or perhaps both of
the following processes, viz: Either exhausted
tea leaves have been obtained. and, after re-
heating and drying, have been restored to
their original color by the admiXture of the
pigments above named, or the fine powder re-
sulting from the handling of large quantities
of adulterated tea has been mixed with stems
and small fragments of leaves, to be sold at a
lower price than the entire article would bring.
necessary to add my opinion that the use of
such an article would be preiudicial to health -