The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-06-25
ADULTERATION OF FLOUR.
coRNsTARcH, FELDSPAR AND BARI
TIES MIXED WITH IT.

| gross Knows the Practice L. InCreaaing-
| Most of the stun Sent to the Southern
| Hn states-DnnGers to Health and Trade.
WARRINGTON. June pa committee OF the
| last Congress obtained some valuable evidence
as TO the adulteration OF flour. though not
| great deal has been heard OF 1t. About three
| years ago the great milling concerns OF the
| country were disturbed to learn that Wholesale
| aud systematic adultcration Of wheat flour
was being practiced by small miers and that
| the practice was spreading rapidly. Measures
| were at once set on foot to detect and expose
| the methods OF the mllers engaged In mixing
| cheap and. in some degree. noI ious ingredi-
| ents with the wheat flour OF commerce. Con-
gross itself subsequently took hold OF the
matter. 1t required no very great degree Of
| detective ingenuity to learn the facts.
| Investigations showed that In 1897. when
this business was only In It's infancy. there
were manufactured and sold In the United
States between 100000 and 100000 barrels
| OF adulterated -four. 1t was found that these
| frauds were almost wholly nractlced by the in
terror millers. and that three fourths OF the
adulterated -four was sold and consumed in the
Southern States Very little or none had been
shipped abroad. because the foreign demand
for our -four 10 mainly supplied by tho great
mills which have too much At stake to hazard
| fraudulent ventures even had they the desire.
Corn -four Is generally supposed to lie the
| chief adulterant. and while It cheapens wheat
| -four for the manufacturer it is not injurious
| to health .inether does 1t lessen the nutritive
qualities Of the adulterated article In any great
| degree. But the frauds were found to be far
| more serious than the introduction OF corn
| meal Upon careful chemical analysis some OF
| the adultsrants that have recently come into
! use among dishonest millers were found to be
| deleterious to health. Besides corn -four. 1t is
known that the chief adulterants used are
| nourne. mineraline and barytos. Chemists
say that these ingredients all contain matter
| directly and positively injurious to health
| while the two last contain no muscle creating
or DEMONSTRATING qualities The percentage OF
| wheat -four displaced by these various adultsr-
ants varies from 10 to 30 per cent.
!. That tourns Is made in large quantities for
the purpose Of adniterating wheat nour is
the House Ways and Mean: ComRHittoss 1907
| DEAR SIRs: We quote to day prices in ear
load lots. freight prepaid to your city. as fol;
o bP%Tnf In IN ge 9aT
pounds: For shipment with thirty days from
dafes @ ,sn to Ss
from date OF shipment. Quotations named arc
subject to change WITHOUT notiee; This grade
enclosed circular for directions how to use it
We trust the low quotations. the extra choice
| quality OF our product and the time Of ship
meent viii result in placing your orders with vs."
Alter advising the miller to use from 10 to
~" In using lourlne as a substitute. especially
color at least two grades thereby. enabling tho
miller also TO obtain on the particular grade
the mixture than without For all Southern
trade hourine is used very extensively, as all
W hr snG TN.
petition by using our. product"
hs snIs4 Of IL 'P
| has this to say: Tho analysis shows the OBJ
81 as phoe
niPsTsl naIte; a. snpsafs Of .o{n fi%%rns
feed on pure dourine he would soon die Tor
starch alone me cannot sustain na fe because
report Of the chief Of the Chemistry Dvs-
lHboTins man would have 70 eat l5O. pounds OF
In the GRADE used to mix With ioar Is 50 pro- pro-
litmus paper is pressed against the. damp
ened flour containing any quantity OF the dele
wes. bsor. the Wsgs and Mean c9mm
tee OF the House engaged In inluirna into
used IN tho OF Murine f in the
| proportion OF not less than two ounces to
f H fhs H"uss sn Of The S1sr
oa t q evidence pp3yns that ourne
MneTaIin lin V as an al nlterant came into vogue
among. dishonest mi!lers bali dozen years
ershs wst anayzsd By Prof Rs {" lie mn" rs
Silica. per cent. - il; aIgmIna. - IS; potash potash.
lssi34 water. S;g7 T9taJ; lasolu9Is in hydro.
says, the ma, erIal is feldspar. and contains a
small amount Of clay e. an impurity It Is a
Ut used as an aIuterant in -four it would
material is in Q very Ghs state ., division. and
being 9b h. II. , wSnd er
Of the oo % y" Of G as
an irritant. Mlperalne has Shiny feeling
The hsby s%Tfe found is a
! aent to usina pulverized rock"
| Barytes. the last adulternnt named. Is a white
require an anSiys5c It is entirely UNIT for
Il 20 d.,snS ,t that . inn
MIXER Without i1fsr o. dstsett!on. ,thenGe
aerred TO- ' leaves room or donEs ha
large quantities Of this prepared rock are used
there maohne invented and soTd to m iaG
throngh out the country called mixer, used
as It issues from tho bolts OF the mil Wv '''''
The Ways and Means Committee Of the
naa one 10
at The last session OF Congress. through Mr.
| Tawnev:
| From evidence thus presented to the COM
| mttee there IL no room " question the fact
| that our wheat -four is to day adutcrated with
| material absolutely deleterious TO health. This
practice. therefore. constitutes menace to the
| health OF more than 7O.OoOOOO people. But 1t
| is not alone the public health that demands a
remedy for the evils Of ndultnration. The
| milling industry il now the largest single In
dustry In the United Stntcs but 1t cannot long
exist part honest and part dishonest, Compe-
| ttion between the honest miller who manu-
facturos -four from all wheat, and the
from part wheat and part cornstarch.
| flourine, barytos. or mueraline. and
| then sells 1t for the pure article must either
| destroy the business OF the honest miller or
make him rascal like his dishonest compe
| tor. No one who stops to consider the facts
| will deny that this Is not competition. but an
| nlhatiOn. This great and constantly growing
| industry is, therefore, seriously mcnared by
| tho fraudulent practice which has recently
grown up among a class OF men who. for the
| hakA OF lnrRrr profits Will not hasitnta to de-