Washington sentinel., 1901-03-02

sold are made subject 10 seizure. --- ne
Wisconsin Leg islature has a bill bsiore
it introduced by Mr. Fenelon, providing
that brewers must la 0el their packages
so as to show "whether the beer is made
OF barley, corn or rice" ."-- New York's
pure beer bill provides that all beers,
ales or porters not made OF pure rice,
pure hops, pure extract OF hops, pure
barley malt, pure Yeast and pure water
shall be labelled "iuierior" This pro-
vision applies not only to beer made IN
the State, but also to what is made in
other States and so d IN New York
The special inspection Of foreign beer
falls to the duty Of the State Excise
Commissioner. All sellers. either in
the wholesale or retail! trade, of what is
termed "inferiOr" beer are TO be com
PEELED to hang a conspicuous sign with
the words "Inferior beer sold here"
The bill further provides that brewers
and bottlers OF beer in the State are to
report twice a year to the State Excise
Com missioner the quantity OF beer
brewed or bottled, and what part OF It
was "inferior" beer. This is Stevens
measure. The one introduced by Mr.
Burnett prohibits any other Ingredient
than bailey malt, hops or hop extract
yeast and water
The presence OF arsenic in certain
beers brewed in Manchester tEngland)
district and the Midland counties has
now been explained 1t arose entirely
from the use OF glucose which had been
contaminated with the poison in the
process Of manufacture. INVESTIGATIONS
have traced the arsenic to the sulphuric
acid employed in the manufacture OF
tha glucose. The firm which supplied
Messrs. Bostock & Co the sugar re-
timers. with the acid admit having
changed the quality in March OF last
wear, substituting an acid made from
pyrites for one made from 5rimstone.
Their excuse for so doing was that they
we're not aware that the arsenical acid
was 70 he employed IN an article OF
human consumption. 1t is difficult to
see how the brewers who had the grlev
Gus misfortune to use the infected glu-
cose we're to blame. They paid the
same price Tor it as they had done tor
the pure article, and no one ever
dreamed that such an extraordinary and
deadly substance as arsenic would be
found IN brewing material. The cor
oner at the Manchester inquest on the
bodies of two Of the victims frankly
recognized the brewers blamelessness
IN the matter, but the jury attached to
their verdict a vote Of Censure, not only
on the makers OF the guilty acid and the
two chemists employed by Messrs.
Bostock, bat upon the brewers as well
1t is reported that many of the firms
ofbrewers intend to sue Messrs. Bostock
s. Co for damages, and that Messrs.
BOstoCk propose LAYING a big claim
against the firm who sold them the
arsenious acid. In the meantime the
local police are busy prosecuting publ
cans tor vending poisonous beer, In
some C ses heavy fines have been IN
fliCted but in others the plea Of lguor-
ance has been allowed and the charge
accordingly dismissed. Whether the
retailer, who could not possibly know
the nature OF the stuff he was selling, is |
liable, vet remains 10 lie se'tled One
magistrate has decided the
question OF the publican's culpabillty
one way, while another has given a
ruling exactly opposite One thing is
certain. The farmers and theirlriends
will Strain every nerve to get a Pure
Beer bull passed during the coming
session. It's an i'll wind that blows no |
one good, and the arsenical poisoning |
epidemic has been a great blessing to |
the advocates Of malt and hops So the |
brewers are 10 be baIassed with legisla-
tion on the top Of their losses. What
The extent of those losses is cannot yet
be ascertained ] was talking to a
Midland brewer the other day. and he
told me that he had to destroy all the
stock beer, amounting to between 400
and 800 barrels which he had brewed
Tor the Christmas trade. My informant
S not in large way Of business, so
your readers can form some idea what
he losses to larger brewers have been.
-AMeyicaH BrsWeyS' Regier.