New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-21
PREVENTING APPLICATIONS.
ACTION or The NATIONAL BOARD OF TRADE
ADULrERATIoN LESS WIDESPREAD THAN H.

ACTION or The NATIONAL BOARD OF TRADR-
ApULTsRATioN LESS WIDESPREAD THAN HAS
BEEN SUPPOSED.
The National Board IF Trade, at its annual meet
ing IN Washington last December, designed com
petition for " the best act OF acts accompanied by
essay designed 10 prevent injurious aduteraton,
ana to regulate the sale of food without imposing
unnecessary burdens upon commerce" One thou
sand dollars contributed by F. b. Thurher, OF this
city, were offered In prizes. The details OF e COM
petition were arranged by The Sanitary tngtntr'
The competition closed October l, and tho Com
mittee of Award. consisting Of John ). billings,
Surgeon L. ). A, vice-presdent Of the National
Board of Health Professor Charles r. Chandler,
president OF the Board of Health of New-York ex-
Chancellor Il. Williamson. OF New-JerSey, and A.
II. Hardy, of Boston, has inst made its report To
G. w. WIgDer, f. {. s.. of London. is awarded the
second. and 10 William H. Newell, NJ d., Of Jersey
City Heights, the third. The committee also recon-
mcnds the printing of the essay of o. "; Wight
NJ D., health officer at Milwaukee, we'll as The
remarks of Albert Il. Prescott Of Ann Arbor, Mich.
In addition TO these awards the committee states
that 1t is gratifying to fluid that none of the
essayists produce any definite or satisfactory evil
3ence as TO the widespread existence OF very dan
ges9us aduteTatiOns IN this country. The absence
OF sush evidence, IN addition to the results recently
ObtaseS by several expert chemists In extensive
series OF a.aVses of the usual articles OF food IN this
country, thec0mmlttee thinks warrants 1t in de-
clarng that hiee of the staple articles OF food or
drIDk are so c0M'Qnly aduterated as 10 be danger
Gus TO health or life. Such dangerous authorizations
appear TO be mainly III the form OF poisonous cOlors
OF cOiofing iuatteIs "S, or instance, I'D conlec-
tionery, aud even these are rare. The question of
the aduiteration OF food, with PERHAPS the excep-
ton of milk should therefore b. considered not so
much from q sanitary standpoint as from that Of
commercial interests: as beins in the ma
ture of fraud III aiding the ale of arti-
ces which are not what they are represented to be-
The Committee is of the opinion that there is much
more danger to health and life IN this country from
adulterated drugs than from adulteTated food, and
that any legislation which Is to deal with the one
should also deal with the other.
Board Of Health IS recon- amended for each state,
and both state ana National legislation on the sub
ject OF adulteraton deemed desirable. Tie State
law sh iuld deal with the subject IN the iudivdua.
state The National w~shoull deal with adulte-
rated articles coming. from foreign countries, OF
passing from one stere INTO another and also with
Inn ba and fr al places under the special jriedic-
dictionisf ~ United States. The Committee Will
endeeeoT 10 prepare and place in the hands of the
,Tcsitest Of the National Board OF Trade. Us soon
as possible drafts of acts prepared accordance
with de general principles contained IL its report.