Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-04-23

The articles go in as the things we don't
specify by name at the top, and come out as
creamery butter below
The picture does not very greatly exaggerate
the nature of the fraud which is now robbing
the farmers of the country of their legiti-
mate rewards, and running some of them
downright If the vile product continues to
be sold as butter, one creamery after another
will be broken up the country over Those who
adulterate the food of n nation are murder
ers. The utmost vengeance Of the law ought
to be visited on them.
These fraudulent butter manufacturers are
growing rich They have a lobby, even in
the United States congress, to look after
their nefarious industry Shameless con-
gressmen themselves are drummers for hog
butter. Not long since it was said that
certain congressman had a very handsome
suite of rooms fitted up. a sideboard was
covered with rare wines and liquors. He in
vited his acquaintance, especially strangers
from outside of Washington, to n sort of free
lunch. They We're given their fill Of drinks,
and then they We're asked to partake of bis
cult and butter Marvels of snowy biscuit
were spread with something cut from what
seemed to be a most appetizng block of but
ter 1t looked lovely and tasted good. After
they had eaten it the invited guests were told
it was oleomargarine, which may or may not
have been true.
Now, a congressman who would do the like
of that ought to be drummed out OF the
country.
When the stufP was first made it was, at
least, honest eff suet But the wretches who
concoct 1t have cheapened even that The
next step was the use of hogs lard. 1t is
now declared to he fact that they try out
the fat of the dead soap factory hogs and use
that for the base of the compound. Fusel
oil, soda ash, cotton seed oil, corn starch,
"caul and kidney beef suet," cows udders,
ground slippery elm bark, glycerine, stearine
and gelatne made from horses and cows
hoofs are some of the articles that go into the
manufacture of hog butter. The list is
taken from the patent Office at Washington,
where the materials are registered To
purify the mass it is treated with nitric acid.
Nitric ncid is n substance that would burn
its way through anybody's hand if drop
should fall upon the back. That is what
! it is.
The board of agriculture of Illinois gave a
slap in the face to the farmers of the whole
country by permitting IN oleomargarine ex-
hibit at the fat stock show in Chicago. 1t
was nothing less than an insult
1t would hardly be the square thing to say
these fellows should not make hog butter;
but they should be forced to label it what it
is, and then grocers would be ashamed to sell
it Many million pounds were made last
year.
Meantime farmers must band together, as
the labor organizations do, and boycott the
makers OF and dealers in the stuff, if they
want to protect themselves At the same
time, they must learn to make their butter so
| perfect that nobody can fail to distinguish it
from the hog butter
A microscopic analysis of the oleomarga-
| rine has shown it often to contain reaches
legs and wings, dirt and unspeakable abomi-
nations. One thing, however, its manufac-
ture may do. 1t may stimulate our farm
people to establish creameres and improve
their methods so greatly that we shall have a
revolution in butter making Then this dairy
product will he as good as that of France
and Holland, and great step forward will
have been made.
Should this prove the case, then the Ameri-
can hog butter experience will not have been
an unmixed evil