The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1894-07-27
The Scandal Of Skinned Milk.

einher symptDmatic Of neral Collapse
la the body politics OF q resuseitation of
the corporate conscience. That there
can be such an alternative ] was not
aware until described the scene to q
Iellow.eitiEen Of liberal opinions, and
was informed with some eiferveseence of
feeling that there are at least two points
Of view from which the occurrence may
be contemplated; that he occupied the
trHo.standpoint, and that !, being an
extremist and prohibitionist, stood ON
a dangerous qnagmire Of mere prejudice
That which ] had ignUrantly, and, there
fore, aadaeiously pronounced lrrOag
emphasis Of iHstioe, he characterized as a
necessary stress, without which the ad-
ministration Of law w0nld inevitably
degenerate into a harmless nonotUny.
The ease was tins: "The City of Gin
cinnati vs., Johann Ysiss--Selhng skim
lnedmilk from unmarked cansw Johann
came MP Hfr0m below in company with
dehased proeugesses, brazen-faced girls
who had rebelled against home, riotOns
men who had broken the peace and tried
to break each others heads, the Migrants
who had been found drunk on the pave
Inents, the thieves who loiter, and the
loiteFeFs who steal. lie was evidently
iIveEy bad society, Int he plead anot
guilty; he was only one Of the uRfOr-
tunates against whom the police have
iFremOvable prejBlices Bat the faith
full ftmilk Inspector" was there under a
police court "0atll' to bear testimony to
the fact that the accused had sold milk
from unmarked cans" and the anaiyti-
cal chemist was there to bear witness
that, having subjected the milk to
analysis, he had found it entirely desti-
tute Of those elements which q normal
COW always furnishes in the true laeteaI
fluid
Evidently the milk had been skinned,
and was only mere shadow and ghost
Of milk, Bondescript liquid in which
there is nothing to stimulate the brain or
enrich the blood. As the judge hearken-
ed to the accommodating evidence hisssnse
Of the enormity Of poor JohaRn's crime
increased; bursting forth, like a new
Sinai, he numbered and famed in mighty
and vOciferOus speech, threatening to
exterminate the whole pestiferous and
destructive business Of peddling SKINNED
milk, even if it should become necessary
to employ all the police powers latent N
that al -,
1.-THE Boss" and & contribution to the
campaign fund, he was then the 'honor-
able" incumbent.
The scene was maiestic--OT mean! The
'JHHotG jacaHf'-the scales of Justice
and the wand Of Mercury, skillfully
carved on the judicial bench, seemed Ito
an imaginative eye to be sympathetically
apPreeiative of the occasion. The foul
atmosphere seemed to culver in accord
with the sovereign, ethical sentiments
Of the judge, and Johann-whero was
hef Like the man without tue wedding
robe he was without tongue! He
made no defense. There was no de-
tense to make he lad soH skimmcd
Nik!! The inspector said so. The
analytical chemist said so There beinr
no recourse, he must pay the penalty
Aud the Bench again Numbered and
1amed--so that he could mot fail to
realize the measaEeless enonnity Of his
offense--FIFFY DOLLARS AND Cosrs!
Well, Johann should not have peddIed
SKINNED milk in Cincinnati Perhaps
he will not sell it again. But, if he had
only sold whisky or beer ont of kegs and
barrels marked with the seal of the
United States government he would
mot have been convicted Of crime. lie
would have demanded II iury-and n
Cincinnati jury can always be depended |
uponto aequit him-or the prosecutor
would dismiss his ease. OF course. the |
children who become "beastly drunk" Oh |
his poisonous drinks may be arrested and |
under the baneful influence of his malig- |
hant merchandise may be punished and |
no meddling inspector nor keen-eyed |
analytical chemist wOnld dare appear
against him aud testify that the fluid
which he retails is a 'pOison"--a foul
liquor of degradation and death--so
vicious in all it's effects that all powers
OF the state should be employed to sup.
press its manufacture and sale. Oh, no /
The saloonist pays special tax,p aud
hedemands andreeeives special projection
Selling STRONG drink'' is not crime
It lisa privilege.
But il IL q serious Oifense to distribute
SKINNED milk through the streets of a
city, Who may measure the danger, the
disease, the disorder aud misery which
lie ~ q can 0f SKINNED milk The peo-
PIE must he protected against these evils,
-therefoEe the Inspector, the analytical
chemist, the police court. True, there
are no children 1.beastly DRINK" on the
paYements because they drank skinned
milk; no men who have become mad be-
cause they have formed the habit Of
drinking skinned milk; no women who
have lost the grace of Wonlanhood be-
cause they had been stapefed by drinking
sisImlned milk; no bright youths WHO
nave become victims of the skinned
lniik habit; no homes that have been
siesolated by the abuse Vt skinned milk
hnt--then-- there Shall not BEL Before this
traffic becomes Zig enough To pay
speelal tay OK a high protective license
tlAe judge Of the p0iiee court will throttle
italisl ifill 10 II AL judges h All tie
A. i A e