Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-22
POISON IN THE FLOUR
OF Annoy, CHINA,
AROUSED OVER THE MATTER.
All Sorts of Rumors Scattered Broad
ast-AntiForeign Agitation Re-
ceived Great Impetus.

Poisoned -four In China is the subject
of an official report from United States
Consul Anderson at Annoy, China. THE
trade in foreign flour from Annoy into the
interior of China and In Annoy ITSELF" says.
the consul. will disappear for some time
to come If the evil effects of most unfor-
tunate occurrence can not be overcome at
once. Somewhere between thirty and forty
people have died as the result Of eating
products of flour sent to Annoy in a certain
shipment from Hongkong and the natives
in the interior as we'll as in Annoy have al
most altogether ceased to use the product
All sorts of rumors have been spread
broadcast and anti-foreign agitation has re-
ceived great impetus. 1t will take earn
est and active effort to overcome the eff
fects. Naturally since the United States
sends almost all the flour that is sold in
this part of China the loss of trade fails
most heavily upon American millers, and
through no fault of theirs
1T seems that about month ago a cargo
OF flour was received In Annoy from Hong
kong, consigned to native importers. This
-four was distributed In the ordinary course
of business, apparently, and seemed to be
no different from any other flour. The
first trouble came at a Chinese restaurant
The proprietor made a native product, re
sembling macaroni, for use in soup, and
served it to a customer, who Immediately
sickened and died. The relatives of the
unfortunate man appeared and claimed that
he had been poisoned, there being every ap-
pearance of morphia poisoning. The pro-
prietor denied that there was any poison in
the food.
This is my business; why should ruin
1t by poisoning a customer? l will eat the
food myself was his defense. He partook
of the food and his wife and daughter ate
of 1t also. Within an hour all Of them
were dead. Naturally such a story spread
over the city and surrounding country with
great rapidity.
Other Deaths Reported.
Meanwhile other cases of poisoning from
flour were reported, and In all there were
something like twenty-five deaths in Annoy.
Some of the -four was shipped up country,
and a half dozen cases are reported from
that district. The worst trouble, OF course,
is not SO much In the actual facts OF the
matter, bad they appear, as 1t Is In the
stories which have been spread ABROAD py
I'm Cbangchau, a city Of well toward
/ 600 OOO people, about thirty miles inland
from Annoy, II is currently reported that
hundreds of people have dled from eaung
the poisoned flour and that many foreign
ers are among the number. The result OF
these stories is that the use of foreign flour
in great district about Annoy and Chang
chau has practically ceased. Hundreds of
small bakers and dealers have stocks on
hand which can not be disposed of. Many
Chinese restaurant keepers and cake mon
gers have been compelled to go out of busi-
ness because people Will not buy products
made from foreign flour. The immediate
loss to their business is great, but perhaps
the more serious phase of the matter Is IN
the fact that 1t has taken years of effort to
build up a trade in these products and for
eign -four generally, and unless the present
trouble can be Immediately done away with
there will be permanent loss, for Chinese
consumers will again become accustomed
to purely native food, and the ground
gained by the foreigners after years of eff
fort will be lost.
No Satisfactory Explanation.
"There is no absolutely certain explana-
ton of the trouble. The poisoned flour not
its origin and distribution have been COW
cred up so far as possible. so that 1t is
very difficult to get at the truth. 1t is prob
able, however, that the Chinese merchants
concerned made an effort to smuggle NOR
phia in some shape into China in packages
in the sacks of flour and that the pack
ages of poison were broken and the -four
was affected. The duty on morphia Is very
high while that on flour is the usual per
cent ad valorem. There u no question that
a large amount of morphia, opium and the
like is smuggled into almost every port In
China. Under the present methods of en-
forcing the collection of duties the informer
system Is about the only possible means of
detecting such smuggling. In the present
instance there was no informer in the case
but the results were not what the mer-
chants concerned counted upon 1t Is very
difficult to get at the facts of such an af-
fair. Sooner later the truth will be
reached, and a repetition OF the trouble will
be prevented.
II have asked the Chinese authorities to
investigate the matter and punish those re-
sponsible for the poisoning Of the flour ana
to issue proper proclamations, SO that there
may be no unjust prejudice against foreign
-four. action being asked on the ground
that American flour makes up the bulk of
the shipments into this portion Of China,
although there is no certainty that the flour
in question was American -four. 1t is prob
able that in the course OF time there will
be such official action as will In a measure
reassure the people of the two taotais dis
tricts Immediately concerned.
The Bond of Emuire