Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-20
DISCUSS BlEACHED FLOUR
EXPERTS GIVE VIEWS AT SEC
RETARY WILSON'S HEARING.
Effort to Show That Flaws Are Pos
sible in Reasoning Of Gov
-ernment's Standbys.

Offering testimony to show that it is
possible to pick flaws In the reasoning OF
the governments experts who believe
that bleached flour is harmful, the millers
today closed their side of the hearing re-
lating to that commodity before Secretary
Wilson and his board of officials. Two
witnesses were examined and cross-ex-
amined. Prof. Allway of Nebraska and
Esrof. Walter 8. Haines of the Rush Medi-
cal College of Chicago. The latter was
called as an expert in toxicology in the
Guinness trial.
Like all expert testimony. to the ordi-
nary everyday consumer Of bread. who
thinks OF where the money to buy 1t
Is to come from. rather than what guam
tity Of nitrates It contains. the state
ments seemed to show that chemist num-
Der one has found that bleacheed -four con-
tains harmful substances. and chemist
number two has found that it does not.
Position Of Government.
While only one side had been heard
on this question up to the time this re-
port closed. it is understood that the
position Of the government chemists is
that any food which contains any poison
Gus substance should be abolished alto
gether or changed so as to contain moth
ing harmful. On the other hand. it is
contended by men of prominence in the
CucIHICdi "OTiO tHdt certain 1OOu COIldiHS
so little poison that it would take a
whole lifetime to absorb sufficient to
cause worry.
Prof. Allway told of many experiments
with bread made with bleached and with
unbeached flour. He had men. women
and children eating bread in an endeavor
to get at the facts. Some of the persons
would not eat the bread unless he but
tered It,
Prof. Ladd in the cross-examination re-
marked that perhaps that was not fair
test.
Experiments With Saliva.
Then Prof. Allway told at length OF
experiments with saliva. He tested sam
pies taken from his assistants his chill
dren, himself and from everybody he
could find to part with any, and said he
found nftrates in all. He made long
speech on the subject. and when he fin
ished DR.. Wiley asked him what nitrates
In saliva had to do with bleaching flour.
He was trying to show, he said. that
nitrites are present in people. anyhow,
and that If any is taken in via bread it is
in less quantities than already exists.
Then, after little skirmish on the sub
ject of whether saliva is q secretion or an
excretion, Prof. Allway closed his testi-
mony.
Removed by Yeast.
A letter from Prof. E. W. lockwood of
Iowa was introduced setting forth. among
other things, that nitrites in bleached
flour are removed by yeast; that they ex-
list In most vegetables and that bleached
flour Is harmless. Secretary Wilson would
not admit the letter in evidence.
Dr. Wiley was about to cite two in
stancs of death from nitrites, spoken of
by Prof lockwood.
Prof. Haines' testimony was somewhat
on the order of lecture on poisons He
cOntradicted several we'll known "WiIey
theories" He said the amount of nitrites
necessary to kill a man Is enormous, and
that there Is nothing harmful, If not eaten
in too large quantities.