Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-08-18
DISEASED MILK AND BUTTER.

The Scientific Amcrican, in treating of
the disease germs in milk, and the neces-
sity OF having competent inspectors at all
dairy establishments, has the following:
Iii well-recognized fact that the mother
who is nursing her child is obliged to be
very careful about her diet, for whatever she
eats or drinks has its effect upon her milk,
and consequently upon the health of her
child. The most acute symptoms, and even
death, may be produced by dietary indis-
cretion. But it is less appreciated that slml-
larly alarming results may be produced in
both children and adults by the use of milk
taken from improperly fed cattle. There
have recently been number of mysterious
poisoning cases, that after great deal of
random speculation have been traced to dis
eased milk. In spite, however, of these
warnings, the subject has not yet
received the sanitary attention to which
it is entitled. Particularly is the
danger of such contamination great
in the neighborhood of large cities, where
the absence of wholesome pasturage is n
temptation to the less scrupulous to substi-
tute all grades of organic refuse, the most
of which should be properly consigned to
the garbage crematory. In addition to this
danger, however, it is discovered that even
in the presence of abundant and suitable
food, cattle are not discriminating in their
selection, but exhibit frequently the most
deprayed tastes. In the neighhorhood of
large distilleries. it has been observed that
the cattle become utterly demoralized by
feasting on the refuse from the stills. In
time they come to have the dull, stupid ap-
pearance characteristic of an opium eater.
1t is hardly possible that the milk produced
by animals permitted to feed on such abom-
Unable stuff can either be wholesome or
agreeable.
So large are the possibilities for evil which
| A.I..
animals improperly fed, either through de-
sign or carelessness, that it is not too much
to ask that all public dairy farms should be
placed under sanitary supervision, and that
the food and quarters of all cattle whose
milk is offered for sale should be regularly
inspected by officials appointed for that
purpose.
The recent Oleomargarine bill carried
much with it that is condemned by the
people at large and outside OF the dairy
interests, but nothing so much as the
entire absence OF any measure whereby
dairymen can be forced to use pure cream
from pure milk for the manufacture OF
standard butter, thereby leaving an open
road for those who choose it, to foist
abominable stuff on the public as butter,
as no chemist can go further than
to pronounce the product to be one
Of cream or otherwise. The great
power for harm which lies in the use OF
cream gathered Unfortunately from
cattle fed in slums and at distilleres, will
now be turned loose on the public and
disease from germs in impure cream will
work havoc among all classes OF society.
Whether the Oleomargarine bill is re-
pealed or not, by the next Congress,
some safeguard should be thrown around
the uses OF poisonous material from
which butter is made, and the friends OF
Oleomargarine would make a ten-strike
ii they could beget such desirable legis-
lation, for nine men in every ten would
prefer clean Oleomargarine to dirty and
disease-laden butter.