The age-herald., 1899-06-23
THE FOOD WE EAT
 IS ALL IMPURE
From the Chicago Record.

age of the Dunlap pure-food bill. Prof. A. s. Mitchell the Wisconsin state chemist, whose revelations before Senator Mason's committed in this city are regarded as the most important secured by the investiga- tion up to this time, had this>to say with regard to the difficulties that will con- front the Illinois commissioner:
 .'The field that is to be- covered in every state is almost endless. New methods and new materials constantly appear in the manufacture of adulterated foods and only the greatest vigilance enables the food authorities to keep pace with them. It has been the case in other states and will doubtless be the case in Illinois that the new laws when thoroughly enforced will at once bring on litigation that will be trying and will more or less hamper the work of the commissioner and his agents. The manufacturers of adulterated foods are financially strong and are fairly well organized to fight. They will undoubtedly endeavor to entice the Illinois officials into embodiment with the manufacturers of patent preparations and the patent people,"
 Professor Mitchell has compiled an inn mense amount of matter relating to the adulteration of food products. Here. is list given by him showing foods and the adulterations used
 'tMilk-Adulterated by the addition of water, the removal of cream by skimming and the addition of yellow anline coloring Gas laktone), butter colors mixtures like cream albuminoid, gelatine and also sugar and dextrine. It is preserved by the add- tion of borax, boracic acid, formic-alde- hyde and such preparations as special preservaline,' freezine' and liquid sweet
 ''Cream-Cream albuminoid and dextrine are made to adulterate cream and preser- vatives are used in milk.
 'Butter-Adulterated by the addition of butter substitutes, such as oleomargerine and butterine, oleo oil, neutral lard, cot tonseed oil, and in exceptional cases by the addition Of small amounts of paraffin wax. Aniline butter colors are commonly used. Borax, boracic acid and similar pre- servatives are used in butter intended for long distance shipment.
 ''Cheese-Adulterated by the removal of the cream from the milk in various degrees from half to whole skins The fat thus re- moved is replaced by neutral lard, as in the manufacture of filled cheese. Cheese colors are used in the same manner as but ter colors.
 'Tea-The condition of tea importations has improved under the enforcement of the adulteration act of 1883, but green teas especially are still subject to facing. This consists of imparting a bright and shining appearance to inferior tea by coating with a mixture of gypsum, soapstone and indi- go prussian blue.
 ''Coffee-Whole coffee is aduterated by the addition of peas, beans and imitation coffee beans. The imitation beans are made from rye four similar cereals and chicory. Ground coffee is adulterated with peas, wheat, rye, chicory and date stones. Subs for coffee sold in the open mar ket consist of parched barley, malt and chieory. Coffee extracts have long been made from parched peas and cereals with burned sugar colorings Shriveled and bHghted coffee beans are imported in large quantities and glazed with brown hema- tite Qron painD and dextrine, so as to give it the brown color of a good roasted coffee. This glazing is also praetised to give uniform color to many of the cheaper grades of coffee.
 Sirups-Most of the sirups sold under fanciful titles consist of glucose, with varying amounts of cane sirup, and are properly compound sirups. Soured srups are reboiled, and in many cases preserved by the addition of salcylic acid. Light colored glucose sirups are colored darker by the use of burned sugars and yellow aniline colors, and dark ma tural sirups are bleached by the use of sulphites. Maple sirup is notorieusly adulterated by the use of cane and glucose sirups.
 ''Honey-Strained honey sold in tumblers is frequently composed almost wholly of glucose sirups, to which a small piece of strong buckwheat comb honey is added to imDart it's flavor the whole Of bee shave been added with a view of convincing purchasers of the genuineness of the article. Artificial combs are in quite general use, but it is not known that artificial honey has been prepared and sold in the comb except through the indirect way of feeding the bees artificial food.
 Maple Sugar-Adulterated with brown and cane sugar. Artificial maple favdrs have been produced by boiling the sugar with hickory bark.
 Wheat Flour-Adulterated with corn flour, which itself has lately become an inn portant article of food The compromising of flour is now under the control of the United States government. Lower grades of wheat flour have been mixed with alum to improve the whiteness of the bread.
 'Iard-Adulteratio with tallow and cot ton seed oil Paraffin wax has been used in place of beef stearin to give body. Co., ccanut oil is used a lard substitute and there are various other substitutes sold under trade names and having for a basis cotton seed oil and beef stearin.
 "Olive Oil-Frequently adulterated re- placed wholly by cotton seed oil The cot ton seed substitute is now generally sold salad oil.
 ''FIaVoring Extracts-are a class of ar ticles more adulterated perhaps than any other. Lemon extract should properly con- tain from 5 to s per cent. of oil of lemon. With the exception of a few brands on the market, which sell at a special price and bear the names of the manufacturers in full, by far the greater bulk contain only traces of oil of lemon-less than one-tenth of per cent. Citial obtaiped from oil of lemon grass is frequently used to give tho lemon flavor. Similar flavor is also pro- duced by the use of citromella aldehyde. Tincture of capsicum and mace are fre- quently used to intensity the flavor, asss the extracts are colored a bright lemon yellow by means of aniline yellow or cur cuma. Vanilla extracts are adulterated by the addition of extract of tonka bean, cu- marin and artificial venilline, and the col or is produced either by burned sugar, prune juice or aniline dyes.