Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1907-12-07

uUOut tuc uOiHsS VI tue COTpOTutlOuS
that furnish 1t with food. They are
dealing In the kind of "public utili.
ties that mean life or death. In OBJ
tanning this knowledge. the public ex-
poets to be enlightened from the re.
ports of state Pure Food Commission
crs and the columns of the press.
Next year is the presidential year.
and on every stump the packers and
their records will he held up to the
public eye and given to the public ear.
The failure of the government in its
attack on the Beef Trust because the
packers turned states evidence OH
themselves and were granted an i'm
munity bath in consequence, has not
been forgotten by the people, and the
great rise In the price of meat has
tested the patience of the voters to the
limit.
The withdrawal of the City Of Chi
cagO inspectors from the big packing
houses, presumably to oblige the pack
crs. has added fuel to the fire. and
next year will see the country ablaze
upon the subject.
The pure food department of Illinois,
like the health department Of Chicago,
has rested suplne. while other states,
like Michigan. North Dakota. Pennsyl-
vania and Kentucky have taken great
pains to protect their citizens.
And the packers appreciate the ef-
forts Of these states to protect the
health Of the men, women and children
residing In them by promising not to
send adultcratcd food into these com.
mOnwealths.
We have not heard of their saying
anything about sending unfit food into
the states where the authorities arc
not SO honest.
According to all accounts. much bO.
raclc acid and sulphites. rs well ns
many dyes, are used by packers, and It
Is against these preservatlves that
many states having honest officials
have taken action.
The records Of the North Dakota
and Kentucky Pure Food departments
show what hns been done In this dlrec-
ton In past years.
We do not know whether borlc acid
ana sulphites are used by the big Chi.
cago packers now or not, as city In.
spectOrs have been withdrawn from
the large houses.
Showing the effect Of borlc acid and
OF tho bOrates. the following Is repro
duccd from pages II and -, Of Part
2. Of the Fifteenth Annual Report Of
Il. +. Ladd, food commissioner Of North
Dakota:
:" the use Of bOraX and
borlc acid interfercs with the alb
sorptlOn OF food and causes the cXcrc-
tIon of an abnormnlly large amount Of
nitrogen. lie believes 1t II demon
stratcd that large doses of bcrlc acid
reduces the body weight and that the
cXcretlOn OF these substances from the
body Is so slow that their accumulation
In the body ls probable. BOraX and
bOrlc acid cause dluresls, which may
produce damage Of the kidneys; they
may cause skin disturbances; they
may produce dIarrhna they interfere
with the abnormal absorption Of food |;
and they may produce vomiting. The
conclusion IL that the use of bOrlc
compounds In food should be forbid
dcn."
On page 12 of the same part OF the
same report, the North Dakota food
commissioner has this to say about the
use of sodium sulphItes In meats:
Our own studies with sausages and
hamburger steak indicate that from
O.2O to O.3O per cent of sulphitcs are
employed In these meats. As to the
hnrmfulness OF these products recent
article by DR.. Harrington, OF Harry.
AMI Medical College, entitled Sodium
Sulphlte; a Dangerous Food Preserva.
tlve,' gives the results of his investi-
cations and from this we quote the
following:
"It Is classcd as n food preserva-
tive, but its antiseptlc properties are
comparatively feeble. 1t Is used more
especially on account of its effect on
the appearance of the food 10 which II
IL added, Its prcscrvatlye influence be.
ing decidedly minor consideration. II
confers upon minced meat Chopped
meat an abnormally brilliant red col
or. which conveys to the purchaser the
idea of freshness. Persistlng ms II
does, meat which Is In reality well ad,
vanced In decomposition Is readily dis
posed Of ms perfectly fresh, for although
the number of bactera per grain may
run as high as 800 millions, II may
give off no marked odor. II may fairly
be said that on account of Its masking
decomposition, it Is an undesirable
admiXturc.'"
certainly, then, with these facts be-
fore MS. we do not believe that the peo-
pie of North Dakota wish to allow the
indlscrlminate use of these drugs and
chemicals in their food products"
The following standards are laid
down for food control work, in the
same report, page ID:
| Preserved meats. Ham, bacon,
dried beef and cured meats should
be preserved bJ smoke, deslccatlon,
! salt and sterilization only.
Sausagcs: Sausages are finely diyid-
ed or hashed meats mixed with spices
and ilayorlng. They may be cooked or