New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-04-24

three thousand samples OF food and articles for
general physical use From the cheapest and most
ordinary article OF diet. such as French sardines
Caught Off the Isles Of Shoals MaineD and canned
salmon with apologies to the swordhshD. TO such
costly deIcacies as Russian sturgeon caviare (col
Iected in Delaware Bay) and pure imported Lucca
oil (frorn the cotton fields Of Georgia.. there IS
imposition. The celebrated lard investigation. In
which our national reputation for honest manu-
facture suffered severely. disclosed that many re-
spected business people were selling compound
articles branded as pure and that they thought
nothing Of their illegal methods
zone Of the most widespread fraudulents IS oleo-
margarine-a mixture OF stearic and palmitic acids
chiehy-which is very difficult to expose. since
not only the apparent but the real differences be-
tween the genuine and the artificial analysis Will
show about 81 per cent OF permanent fatty acids in
butter and about 50 per cent in the fats used for
manufactured butter. Out Of So butter samples re-
Gently examined a were found pure. while a were
impure. Out OF al lard samples so proved pure and
81 were not. The expense OF examining suspected
samples is large. but science is at work on a
cheaper method TO protect the farmer and the
housekeeper- As II is. there is consumed In the
United States Il sufficient quantity OF oleomar-
garine to supply each inhabitant with more than
one pound annually. This unwholesore substi-
tute, which obtains the regular market price OF
ordinary butter costs seven cents pound 10 make,
or only half that OF absolutely pure butter. More
than "a annually extracted from poor Peo-
Coffee berry aduIterants are seeds like beans and
peas and roots Ike chicory. dandeIion and carrot
No one has ever been able 10 compute the extent 70
which coffee. our most popular beverage. Is being
adulterated but experts agree that IL must be
more widespread than the oleomargarine evil
Their, are more than six firms IN this country
regularly engaged in the manufacture Of coree
bean making machinery Each firm has scores OF
clients using the machines. which grind out bogus
berries by the ton. There are hundreds OF bean
making machines in daily operation. and they are
producing a better looking berry than ths bush
grown bean. The factory made berry IS the more
perfectly formed. ard has glossy appearance
generally wanting in the true coffee berry; this IS
the only apparent difference Buying the roasted
berry IN pulverized form. as many people do. IS
fraught with considerable risk or twsnty-rour
such samples submitted the official test. only
eight pure, while sixteen were adultsratsd
IN any event. the best Java berry seldom reaches
Us The Javanese believe that the berry when
kept dry improves with age. and they keep their
very finest brands for seven and eight years IN
storage before disposins OF them The national
in this country. debaSed by adulteration- IS
not fit to appreciate eiglt-year-old Mocha Java.
and even II It but miIlionaires would
be able to enjoy IT, since thlhIefu OF the genuine
thing costing so pfennigs IN Germany. would
probably cost almost 81 here.
Tea IS now cheap that the vegetables aduI-
terants formerly used have become Unprodtable.
and II IS safe say that every pound sold IN the
market y actually Crown on the Tea tree. GOOD
tea should yield IS per cent. and often high
So per cent. Of it's weight to boiling water. But a
process exists for colorins the leaves TO desired
tinge which is seldom applied to any brands but
those Of the choicest. such are made TO sell
as choice by coIorng- The colorins ingredients.
faclngs.' most frequently employed are PrUssian
blue and indigo The cheapest kinds Of consist.
to a great extent. Of exhausted leaves. and TO
remedy this the Chinese put in a little coIoring
matter. Moral: Scrutiaize the very cheap and the
very dear tea
You can buy cocoa so called IN New-York
cheaper than the VenezueIars can buy this. their
national beverage IN the stores OF Caracas! The
starch and sugar compound added TO these ex-
tremely healthfuI decoctions is not always harm
less Noxious foreign fats and ferruginous
earthly substances have recently been detected m
both cocoa and chocolate
The aduIterant most frequently employed IN the
production Of sugar is glucose. very much cheap
er. but less sweet substitute. and tnsOlubls sub
stances. like marble dust. are often added. espe-
ciaIIy FOR use by manufacturing confectioners.
other foreign substances such as ultra-marine are
often left in from the process Of manufacture. so
as to give a certain blue color required for some
brands OF sugar.
The aduIteration OF drugs. spices and preserved
things is a veritabe craft 1t is such deep seated
evil that all the lawmakng OF many centuries has
failed prevent II from spreading. to say nothing
OF stopping it. The substitution OF red lead and
rice -four for cayenne pepper. OF -four and turmeric
for mustard. OF cereals mustard hulS and peas for
ginger. Of charcoal cracker dust and spent cloves
for aIlspce: Of burnt meal. mustard. buckwheat
hUIIs and dust for pure pcpper-these are only a
few, conparative iunoCeuts out OF time honOred
company of classic frauds The most poisonous
known are the adulterants used FOR coIoring or
cbaapeuinr confectionery and liquors. Out OF 90
andy samples examined by the Massachusetts,
Board of Health. IS were colOred with deadly lead
clror1ate: out OF Al cayenne pepper samples 40
were bogus. IS samples OF mOlasses brought out
SO cases containing tin; IS mustard samples yielded
20 genuine and Is adulterated and out OF a total OK
l. 49, samples Investigated go were good. while 90
were gently put down as not conforming 10 the
statutes.
'.The substitution prevalent IN drugs and medf-
cnes is an evil that merits the closest official
scrutiny. The recent substitution on very large
scale Of acetaulld. a very dangerous drug. for
phenacetlne which is practically harmless. per-
uetrated despite the fact that overdose OF
aeetauiIid means death. In patent medicines the
method Of substitution is a fact regarded pyacti-
caIIy as a business asset. and though many good
injured rather than benefited by the exploitation
of many patent drugs
Even honey is not exempt. The greater part
sold in this country never the inside OF bee
hive. y little dextroglucose. drop OF water. and
Httle evogIucose. and behold! there Is your pure
select table honey Many a bee has made 2s25.OOO
Individual calls on flowers TO make one pound
OF honest honey. bit INSCRIPTIONS commercalism
cannot wait for the swiftest and most thorough OF
natures workmen.
Massachusetts,. New-York and various other
States are investigating food frauds more visor-
oUsly every year. and much has been accomplished
to check these food adulteTatOns- But care Is sun
necessary in these days of merccnary merchandise
ing In purchasing articles Tor the consumption OF