Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1907-11-30

about the dOlngS OF the CORPORATIONS
that furnish 1t with food. They are
dealing in the kind Of ''public utlli.
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.
ers and the columns of the press.
Next year Is the presidential year.
and OH every stump the packers and
their records will be 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 on
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.
ers, has added fuel to the fire, and
next year will see the country ablaxc
upon the subject.
The pure food department Of Illinois,
like the health department Of Chicago,
has rested supine. 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 adulterated food Into these com.
monwealths.
| We have not heard of their saylng
anything about sending unfit food into
the states where the authorities IRE
not 30 honest.
According to all accounts, much bO.
raclc acid and sulphites, as well as
many dyes. are used by packers, and 1t
Is against these prcservatives that
many states having honest officials
have taken action.
The records Of the North Dakota
and Kentucky Pure Food departments
show what has been done In this dlrec.
tion In past years.
We do not know whether b0ric acid
and 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spectors have been withdrawn from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 IL repro.
duced from pages II and 12. Of Part
2, OF the Fifteenth Annual Report Of
Il. +. Ladd, food commissioner Of North
Dakota:
:" the use Of bOrax and
borlc acid intcrfcrcs with the alb
sorptIon of food and causes the cxcre-
tlon Of an abnOrmally large amount Of
nitrogen. He believes 1t Is demon.
strated that large doses of boric acld
reduces the body weight and that the
eXcretlOn Of these substances from the
body Is no slow that their accumulation
In tho body is probable. BOrax and
boric acid cause diurcsIs. which may
produce damage Of the kidneys; they
may cause skin disturbances; they
may produce diarrhGa; they Interfere
with the abnormal absorption Of food
and they may produce vomiting. The
conclusion IL that the use Of bOrlt
compounds In food should be forbid
dem"
On page I? of the same part Of the
same report. the North Dakota food
commissioner has this to say about tlt
use Of sodium sulphltes In meats:
"Our own studies with sausages ant
hamburger steak indicate that frOu
O.?O to O.3O per cent Of sulphites ar
employed In these meats. As to TIN
harmfulness of these products reccn
article by DIR. Harrington, OF Harv
ard Medical College, entitled Sodium
Sulphite; a Dangerous Food Preserva
: tive gives the results of his investi
= cations and from this we quote tin
J. following:
q "'It Is classed rs food preserva
tive, but Its antlseptic properties ar
comparatively feeble. 1t is used NOR
9 especially on account Of It's effect ol
7 the appearance of the food to which
Is added. Its preservatlvc influence be
ing decidedly minor consideration. ]
confers upon minced meat (choppe'
). mcat) an abnormally brilliant red col
or, which conveys to the purchaser til
a idea of freshness. Pcrsistlng ms
4 does, meat which Is In reality we'll nd
@ yanced In decomposition Is readily dis
. posed of as perfectly fresh, for although
1 the number of bactera per grain ma
!. run as high as 800 millions, 1t ma
r give off no marked Odor. 1t may fairl
n be said that on account of Its maskln
decomposition, 1t Is an undesirabl
' admiXture."
n "Certainly, then, with these facts be
fore us, we do not believe that the pee
pie OF North Dakota wish to allow til
indiscriminate use Of these drugs am
! chemicals In their food products"
y The following standards are lal'
I down for food control work, In til
same report, page 13:
Preserved meats: Ham, bacOr
y dried beef and cured meats shOul'
be preserved l.. smoke, deslccatior
salt and sterilization only.
Sausages: Sausages are finely dlvid
! cd or hashed meats mixed with spice
u and 1avOrlng. They may be cooked o