The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-07-24
State Board of Health VIII En-
force 1t, Too.
WILL MAKE ANALYSIS.
Name of Offending Manufac-
turers to Be Published.
State University and Agricul-
tural College to Do the Work.

turn from their summer vacations" said
DR.. S. j. Crumbine, secretary of the
state board of health today, 1--WE are
going to start up a pure food campaign
in this state, under the law passed by
the last legislature, which will make
the manufacturers of food products take
notice.
1t is the college professors who are
the handspring of the state pure food
laws as they now stand on the Kansas
statute books. Until the last session of
the legislature, the law had no main
spring, and consequently, was q. dead
letter. Kansas has always had mag
nif1cent code OF pure food laws, with
the exception of the handspring.
Here is what the new law says:
1t is hereby made the duty OF the
departments of chemistry of the state
university and state agricultural col
lege to make thorough and complete
or beverages manufactured or prepared
for domestic use. sent to said chemistry
departments by the state board of
health of the state of Kansas
This valuable service is to be given
absolutely free to the cities and coun-
ties of the state. It supplies the miss
ing link in the legal chain as 1t has
heretofore existed. The trouble has
been up to this time that the city and
county authorities have had no way OF
finding out whether an article is really
pure or impure, without going to large
expense, which they would be likely to
do only in extreme cases. Consequently
the pure food laws have been very much
| neglected, and Kansas has been used,
no doubt, as dumping ground for Inn
pure food stuffs which are barred by
| the statutes of other states.
Some of the things which are most
frequently adulterated are these: Ma
ple sugar, milk, chocolate, baking pow
der. spices Of all kinds, preserves. Jel-
| lies, canned meats, canned fruits. pick
| les, candies, and many other things
| which adorn the shelves of any well
| stocked grocery
| Retail grocers are, as general thing,
unable to protect themselves from such
| imposition, and they sell the goods to
| their customers in good faith. The new
law, however, enables the public to pro-
tect itself, for it provides that if the
| analysis shows that the article exam
| fned is impure, '.the board of health
| shall cause to be made public the name
| of the article or articles SO found to
| be impure or injurious to health. and
| the name Of the manufacturer thereof,
where the same can be ascertained. the
| same to be published in the official
/ county paper, and paid for as other city
| or county printing" -
| DR.. Crumbine says: ''It is the pub
| Iicity which the manufacturers Of inn
pure and adulterated foods most
dread. Fines do not bother them,
| because their business is usually out
| side of the state whers the of1ensa
occurs and they are therefore beyond
| the reach of state courts. But any
state can reach the manufacturer,
wherever he may be located, by pun
/ licity. It would simply ruin the bus1-
ness of a manufacturer to have his
| foodstuff publicly branded as impure.
/ And that is exactly what the law ex-
poets it to do. It will have the effect
of driving impure food out of the
state of Kansas"
| 1o1 fYflpGfI0n
| whether the professors at the state
| university and state agricultural col
lege are obliged to take up this new
work, which is entirely outside Of
lfessors may have scontracts which
limit them to certain kinds of work
at the institution where they are en-
| gagged. But the attorney general mas
in similar cases, decided that any Off
/ cial employed by the state can have
/ his duties changed and modified, in
creased or diminished, at the will of
the legislature. The only recourse
and contracts contrary to this law are
II have talked to the professors in
the chemistry departments of the state
university and the state agricultural
college, said DR.. Crumbine, "and be-
Iieve that they are willing to do the
work OF course they are somewhat
surprised because the legislature gave
the work to them without giving tneH1
more help and more salary. but the9I
saw that all they ask is that the work
be divided fairly between the two ia
stitutions. Such division will be
made, and all the articles for analysis
which relate to farm products, such
as breakfast foods, butter, milk, etc,
will be sent to the agricultural col
llege, while other things will go to the
university.
s'It is impossible to do much with
fI,iS Iau ri now because All the
college professors are away OIL their
summer vacations. But this fail ex-
pect to send circular letter to all the
county and city boards in the state,
calling their attention to the new law,
and asking them to examine their
markets for suspicious articles OF
food. The matter was discussed some
what at the recent meeting of the
state board of health and the county
health officers, and this plan seemed