Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-11-10
CONFESSIONS OF A CANDY yIAKEI
The Adtlltcrated Sweets Sold by Comic,
TONERS.

From the Chicago Times.
A well-knOwn wholesale manufacturer said
every man who buys candy at wholesale knows
what he is buying. There is no deceit prac-
tised in the wholesale trade. 1t wouldn't pay
the manufacturer to act otherwise than square
with his customers. | doubt if there is a whole
sale confectiOner in the United States who
would not like to see adulteratOn stopped. 1t
is a bare-faced fraud on the consumer and the
worst of it is the in Jury tails upon innocent lit
tie victims who are mainly the children of the
poor. Let me see: There is invested in whole
sale candy making in Chicago somewhere about
SSOO.ooO. and something like S3.OC0.O 600 worth
of goods are sold by the manufacturers every
year. There are at least two concerns who have
upward of from $4,000 to $135,00O in the
business, and there are several who run from
$4,000 to 100000 each. OF course. a good
many pounds of good candy is made. but there
is also large amount of vanous stuff put on
the market and consumed"
Cant this adulteratiOn be stopped"
at could by united action, but it can't be
prevented so long as there is more money in
making the slush and frothy stuff than in max
ing pure goods. ain satisfied that it is a wrong
that ought to be remedied."
What enters into the adulteratiGn?"
Terra alba For instance: l am buying
sugar to-day for nine cents and an selling
mixed candy at the same price. ] ask you,
what must that candy be? Do you suppose
that want to sell that stun? But what can l
do! Here comes man. and he says, i want "a
carload of candy. and don't want to pay more
than eight and a half cents a pound for it.
What can say to him? know what he wants.
he says, Make it az mean as you like, only
make it look nice l don't cheat him. We
only put in greater percentage of terra alba
that all; and he knows it. If refuse to sell
hlm the stuff my competitor next door or over
the way will give him all he wants, and must
see my trade go. While he buys big bill of
poor stuff, that class of customer also buys a
moderate amount of good goods"
How great is the percentage of adultera-
tiOn?'
'There is asort of graded stuff. It runs from
10 to 80 per cent. but there is more than 80 per
cent adulterated candy Sold To seventy parts of
sugar there are thirty parts OF earth, and some
OF the candy Is even cheaper than that. AS l
said before. there is more money for the manu-
tacturer in the adulterated goods than in the
pure stuff. and that is why the market is kept
stocked with it,.
where does the adulterated stock mostly
60 to-"
"There is some sold here. but not so much as
some people would think, but great deal of it
goes to the southwest, among the darkies and
New Mexicans. The latter seem to take kindly
TO earth-adulterated candies; for the greater
it is adulterated the reader sale it seems to
have there; Up in the northwest. where there
are lots OF Yankees; Irish, Norwegians and Ger
mans, they won't have the adulterated stuff
The Germans are great for rock candy. and that
has to be pure. The. Norwegans take more
kindly to taffy or darker candies; but these are
nearly always pure. Now, there are the Nor
mons. Do you know that they won't touch
anything that is adulterated if they know it?
They want bang-up goods and they are willing
to pay the price. California is also good on
that point"
''How about the stick candy, 20 much pre-
ferred by children?'
TL0A - l,,lkz n
Fights of a cent to make this candy, and eight
and three-fOurth cents for the sugar, and we
sell the pure for nine and three-fourth cents.
Where is our profit in that ask you? But an
adulterated candy is made and sold at nine
cents pound, and on that we make one cent a
pound"