Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-08-02

Pure food and inspection of articles
and places for their preparation or
| manufacture is an important branch
of sanitary science, and properly be-
longs to the department authorized and
organized to safeguard the public
health. The law enacted by the
Thirty first general assembly should
be looked upon simply as a beginning.
The provisions of the present law fail
to compass the most important fea
lures of the subject in that it deals
with the chemical and cumulative
aspect of the question to the exclusion
of the sanitary features,
While 1t is not our intention to un-
derestimate the serious consequences
sometimes resulting from the use of
adulterated articles of food or the need
for stringent prohibitive regulations,
we content that this is an evil of but
small proportions when compared to
the loathsome and disgusting conditions
pertaining to the preparation and quail
ity Of the meat and milk supply. and that
far more disastrous results are pro-
6uced thru consumption of diseased
VI Communicated tIliHldl
than from chemical authorizations.
The federal meat inspection law now
being rigidly enforced at all packing
houses engaged in foreign or interstate
commerce if unsupported by state or
local restrictions, may prove a BOOM
erang loaded with destruction to the
very communities raising and supply
ing the choicest live stock in the world.
Since the new federal regulations have
been put in force, the cattle buyers at
all of the large centers of the packing
industry have refused to pay for cat
tie until after slaughter and inspec-
ton by the government inspectors. II
the carcass is declared by these Off
Gals to be diseased or otherwise unfit
for consumption as food, it is sent to
the rendering tank to be manufact-
ured into fertilizer, and the shipper
is required to stand the loss. AS a
result there is now a. large decrease
in the receipts of so-called Gamers"
at the various stock yards. local ship
pers finding it more profitable to dis
pose of these to the local butcher at
home. Hence the people OF Iowa who
by rights are entitled to the best and
choicest VI lIedtS, die SotIPeitSh w
live upon the carcasses Of old worn
out cows. unthrifty calves, cattle and
hogs in advanced stages of tubercu-
losis. and occasionally choice steak
from a fat steer suffering with actin
omycosis dump jaw.
Perhaps our readers may think this
somewhat overdrawn: if so, let them
investigate as to the class of cattle
and hogs purchased by the local
butcher and then let them visit the
local slaughter houses of almost any
town in the state. The repulsive con-
dition to be seen in most of these in
situations would soon arouse the in
dignation of the whole community.
Many of the butcher shops present
tolerably clean appearance to the GUS
toner and the supply of meats on
hand may be carefully arranged to
meet the eyes of the fastidious house
keeper But go behind the scenes into
the green ROOM investigate the
cooling room and cellar, then question
the employees as to their personal free
dom from diseases such as tuberculo-
sis, gonorrhea and syphilis. Some but
chers are more careful than others,
but they are the exception rather than
the rule. Nothing can be more loath-
some and revolving to the senses of