Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1894-09-13
Address Of the Legislative Committee
the Pennsylvania State Grange.

The Legislative Committee OF the Penn
sylvania State Grange, P. of H., aware OF
the effort of the oleomargarine manuiac-
turers to effect the repeal of the restrie-
tive law of 1885, after due consideration
would respectfully report: That we regard
any modification of the act of May q, 1880,
looking to the removal of its restrictions
upon the manufacture or sale of counter
felt butter as injudicious and wholly un-
warranted.
On the contrary, we would urge the
more effective enforcement of the present
law, not merely for the advantage of the
dairy interest, one most important to the
prosperity ofthe country, but for the sake
of the preservation of the health of the
whole community, than which there can
be no more vital issue. The dairy interest
may be not improperly regarded as the
! very foundation of good husbandry and ag-
ricultural prosperity. In it in this State
is invested larger amount of capital than
in any single industry, and it gives direct
employment to a greater number of peo-
pie.
While we do not ask for any especial IA
vor under the law, We do demand that il
| shall be considered fairly and equitably.
OleOmargarine is an imitation and
counterfeit of butter and is invariably
palmed off on the consumer as butter. II
is a fraud, pure and simple.
1t should be accorded no more protec-
ton under the law than counterfeit money.
In some respects bogus butter is even
more dangerous to the public than bogus
money, as has been shown by thorough
investigation of the processes of manuisc-
| ture.
Hon. Norman J. Smith, U. S. Commits
sioner of Agriculture, ascertained thai
over 40 different articles were used under
| 10 patents by the man ufacturers of Anita
| tion buffers.
Among the ingredients are Tactic acid
lyorscic acid, salicylic acid, benzoic acid
nitric acid and butyric acid, cottonseed oil
oleo. oil, fats of all animals, lard, tallow
caul, fat, glycerins, annatto, steerine, etc
The resources of modern chemists en-
able the manufacturers to render any ami
NAL fat or offal, no matter how rancid it'
condition, together with cottonseed oil, in
to compound, which, in appearance, i
| difficult to distinguish from creamery but
ter, which deception is further carried ou
! by the methods of packing and marketing
which they adopt.
| It has also been dem onstrated that IL
| the process of manufacture oleomarga
rine is not heated above 125o, which Is no
sufficient to destroy any disease germs thu
animal fat may contain, while the power
full acids used to purify and deodorize then
are dangerous to human economy.
Besides this the coloring matter nov
generally employed by large manufactur
ers is an analine dye called Methy'i
orange, coal-tar color. According t.
eminent authorities, who were officially
investigating this matter, another coal Ia
product, cheap and nasty, which is nov
being used extensively, where the law
still permit the making of eleomargarine, i
"parsphine wax, which. indigestible it
| self, has the dangerous property of coating
the stomach and digestive organs, destroy
| ing their power of digesting anything"
1t therefore appears to us that the in
terests of the public will be best served
not by the repeal of the act of 1885, be
cause of the allegation that it is inopera
tive or for any other pretext, but by full
and proper enforcement of that law; ant
we do demand that the Legislature of ls9'
provide by an appropriation means OF such
enforcement by the State authorities.
LEONARD RHoNB,
GERARD G. BROWN,
B. II. WARREN,
r. II. THOMAS,
+. N. MOORE.