The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-06-17
B0RAX NOT 50 BAD.
What Convention Of German Sci
.entists Said.
ITS A MATTER OF QUANTITY
Pepper and Mustard Are Bad If
Used to Excess-AIso sauer-
kraut.

Fros, The Journal bureau. Room 10. Post
Building, Wussin1tos.,f .&2Ftsa
Washington, June ia consular re-
port from Honey w. Diedrich. represent
ing the United States at Bremen. pub
ished to-day, throws an interesting
scientific light on the question Of the use
OF borax in preserving meats and will in
terest Minnesotans in view of the recent
decision of the state supreme court.
Last month at Berlin there was a con-
ventiOn of German scientists called to
enter protest in the name Of science
against the enforcement OF the new law
prohibiting the use of iborax and boracic
acid In meats. This law goes into effect
next fall, and the convention pointed out
it would prevent the importation of a.
large quantity of American meat. Be
sides, said Professor DR.. Lieberich, of
Berlin, one Of the ablest German phar
macologists, there is no scientific
ground for assuming that borax makes
meat harmful He admitted that If it
were possible to use all our food arti-
cles in their: natural condition without
changing them or adding to them, it
would be an ideal Situation; but he main
tanned that it was an impossible one.
Scientific investigation and practical 'ex-
perlments lad shown that the reasons
urged by the bundesrath for promulgating
the new meat inspection law were en-
tirely untenable and he insisted that be-
fore any government department should
declare articles of food injurious, it
should use the greatest care in making
sure that its information and conclusions
were correct. The only safe way Of
reaching conclusions was through expert
ments made with the preserving chem
icals upon the human system Therefore,
he would not consider experiments made
with animals, for many animals were en-
tlrely proof against certain poisons,,
while others were sensitive to things that
were harmless to man.
He strongly advocated the use of borax,
but emphasized its proper use, reminding
his audience that the immoderate use of
pepper and mustard is also injurious to
health He argued that it would be a
bad practice to prohibit the use of foods
to people generally, simply because they
might not be good for children and in
valids, otherwise it might be necessary.
to prohibit by law the use of sauerkraut
and pork. It would have been more rea-,
>sonable, he declared, to have officially
stated exactly what quantity of boracic
acid Is injurious and the meat packer
would have been governed accordingly.
!, Other speakers in the convention con-
tended for the UTTER harmlessnes of borax
upon the stomach and intestines. One of
them called attention to the fact hat the
British government: after careful and ,ex-i
tensive Investigation, had recently an
nounced that it saw, no reason for pro-.
hibiting the use of boracic means of pre-
serving food articles. 50
DR.. Gerlach of Wiesbaden declared that
boracic acid had been in use for decades
among civilized nations las a means of
preserving, and there had been ample
time for showing definitely any evil eff
feets, but no complaints had been heard
from the people, land this new law came
without any Warming . >5:1 -.
y Finally, the convention unanimously
adopted a reso1utionatnat "The prohibi-
tion of borax and botacic acid for preser-
walton of food articles, as decided upon by
the bundesrath, is not justified and cannot
be supported by facts. ~ f-.--
q sgs!lt a-sW.. w. 9Jermane.