Nebraska advertiser., 1879-01-09
SUGAR ADULTERATIONS.
Petitions to be Presented to Congress
Asking for Legislation upon
the Subject.

The following proceedings of busi-
ness men of Chicago, which we find
in late copy of the Inter Ocean, is
of great interest to every locality in
the land; so much so that it becomes
the duty of every representative in
Congress, equally with that of those of
Illinois and Chicago, to interest them
selves in the passage of law forbid
ding, under heavy penalty the adul-
teration of sugar or other articles of
| food:
FROM THE PEOPLE.
CHICAGO, Jan. 2, 1879.
To the Honorable Senate and House of Rep
resentatiyes Of the United States
Your petitioners respectfully repre-
sent to your honorable body
That there is general and alarm
ing tendency to adulterate articles of
food of almost every kind, often MAX
Ing them not only unhealthy and
dangerous, but, it is claimed, absolute
ly poisonous.
In view Of this, your petitioners
earnestly request your honorable body
to enact thorough laws for the protec-
ton of the public from this evil, and
respectfully refer you to the adulter-
alton of food act of the United King
dom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Here follows, as petitioners, the
names Of forty business firms
Your petitioners respectfully repre-
sent to your honorable body !:
!. That the sweets now in use In
the United States, including sugar
cane, maple sugar, sirups, candies,
jellies. honey, etc., are often adulter-
ated with corn glucose.
2. That this glucose is manufactur-
ed from corn starch by boiling the
starch with sulphuric acid Toll of Wit
riol), then mixing it with lime. The
glucose retains more or less of sui
phuric acid, lime, copperas, sucrate of
lime, etc.
3. That seventeen specimens of
common table sirups were recently ex-
amined by r. G. Kedzie, A. NJ, Pro-
fessOr of Chemistry-in the Michigan
State Agricultural Society, at Ian
sing. Fifteen Of these proved to be
made of glucose: one contained 141
grains of sulphurie acid (oil of vitrioD
and 724 of lime to the gallon: another,
which had caused serious sickness in
a whole family, contained " grains
of sulphurio acid, % grains of sui
phate of iron (copperas), and 1868
grains of lime to the gallon.
4. The American people are pre-
eminently sugar eating people. The
consumption of sugar by each indi
vidual in our country, is shown by
statistics to be abOu, forty pounds a
year. 1t is seen at once that the adul-
terators of sugars and other sweets,
not only cheat our people in the quail
ity of what they Consume, since glu-
cose contains from 80 to 40 per cent of
sugar, but injnre the public health, by
selling under false names an article
injurious to health.
5. 1t is as much the right of Con-
gress to enact laws against adulterat-
ing food, as it is to enact laws against
other frauds, for instance, if counter
feiters of money injure the public
wealth. counterfeiters of food injure
the public health.
In view of the above facts. your Pc
titioners earnestly request your honor
able body to decree that the adulterat-
ed products are fraudulent practices
against the people; and to enact laws
for the suppression of this Illegal bus
iness. And your petitioners will ev-
er pray.
The document is signed by several
hundred citizens and business men.