Evening journal., 1901-12-30
MILK NTANDARDSIl
NOT THUNDERSTORM
Some Legislation Is Open to
Question
interesting Bulletin Upon the Subject
Issued bV Delaware College Rx-
perimentaI Station


Station issues the following bulletin:
The question of standards to gov
ern the city milk trade is important
and but little understood. The pure
food agitation that is now justly hnd-
ing general support, began about twen
ty-five years ago In the attempt to
check frauds IN THE sale of milk. These
frauds had become enormous I'm extent.
In the opinion of some exceeding all
other commercial frauds combined, and
often dangerous to health, and even
TO life. Twelve years ago iifty-six per
cent. Of all the samples OF milk tested
in Philadelphia We're considered adll4
terated; at present, suspected cases are
comparatively rare. Evidently great
progress has been made toward the
exclusion of impure or aduterated
milk, and unfortunately at the same
time great injustice has been done to
hundreds of honest dairymen and milk
dealers, and much valuable property
in herds has been impaired AT the
present time about nineteen States and
Territories have no special laws gov
erning the milk trade; eleven prohibit
the sale of impure on adulterated milk
and the remainder, in addition, fix GER
tain arbitrary standards OF compost
tion to which all milk offered for sale
must conform.
Now these laws evidently aim at
two widely different ends. One is TO
protect purchasers from poisonous or
Injurious adulteratlons or from dis
ease germs perhaps still more deadly
About this there can be little diner
ence Of opinion among right minded
people Physicians seem TO agree that
any substance which retards or pre-
vents the souring of milk may be, and
probably is unfavomble to digestion.
and therefore dangerous to health.
Hence the practice of adding preserva-
tives to milk cannot be too strongly
condemned. for human life Is jeOpar-
died thereby. Recent advances in the
knowledge Of diseases indicate that
much illness is chargeable 70 germ
.aden milk. hence proper sanitary sur
rOundings of the dairy, and freedom
from disease in herds, are conditions TO
be enforced by law equally with chemi-
cal purity.
The other end aimed at by milk
laws Is TO prevent the sale of an arti-
Gle, good and pure and withal whole
some, but not quite so rich pound for
pound, as some other articles OF its
class. About the wisdom and justice OF
this there may be question. The case
would be cutie similar If the sale OF
cotton in clothing should be prohibited
because It is not so warm as wool; OF
as If the sale of certain fruits should
be prohibited because they are not OF
so fine a flavor as certain others. In
considerable number of States milk
even though pure and wholesome. eX-
cellent in itself, may not legally be
sold If IL falls below a certain stand
ard and sometimes a very high stand
ard OF composition. Thus In Massa-
chusetts, for example milk containing
/ thirteen per cent. or more of solids Is
! legally good" milk, and it may bring
eight or ten cents a quart, but milk OF
twelve and one-half per cent. solids
during the winter months, is legally
mot good, and may not legally be sold
at any price If the former is worth
eight cents, surely the latter ought u
be worth at least seven cents, and any
intelligent person would as cheerful,
pay that as eight cents for THE other
/
at any price, is a crime punished will
a fine, and for repeated "offenses,
even with Imprisonment. How unrea
sonable this is win appear from th'
following facts: During The Buffal'
Exposition thorough tests we're mad
of ten herds. each of five COWS, rep
resenting ten principal breeds OF dair.
cattle. AS these herds were all judi
ciOusly chosen from among the best o
their kind by skilled men bent on max
ing The best possible showing for thei
favorite breed, they make be taken
not as representative Of good COWS, bu
far more. as about the best that tn
. country mas been able to produce. NOV
five OF these ten herds, viz. the Short
horns, Holsteins, Ayrshires, Brow
Swiss and Dutch Belted, gave, durin
the six months trial, milk OF an aver
ago composition such that
could not be sold legal
in Massachusetts, or Vernon
except in summer, amid not at any tim
lin New Hampshire, or Minnesoti
-Four OF these herds named ranked, i
point of profitable production Of tota
! solids. as the first four on the list, an
hence they may fairly be considered a
about the best twenty COWS In uh
United States and Canada in that re
lspect. Then under the most favoraDl
possible surroundings, with the best {
care. far better fed and tended tina
lnine-tenths of mankind, the best twer
Z ty COWS in the country for the purpos
+; named, produced milk that would ,
! held legally mot good" or FOR th
o purpose of this act adu.terated,'
e four States. One of these herds, Oh
Holsteins, produced the creates
5 amount of butter fat of all, yet thes
b the best five COWS in the United State
4 in that respect, gave milk too poor
y sell in eight States and the DisTi'
y of Columbia.
e In four of these states the standai
= is a trihe lower than in the fol
q named, burt yet high enough to exclud
;, not only the Holsteins, but also n
Dutch Belted; and in six more Stat
the standard, twelve per cent. OF solid
is exactly the average Of the Holsteini
: but. of course, as during fully half q
time they would fall below this averal
they would be excluded. So in fou
teen States and in the District of Q