Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1908-03-07

about the doings Of the corporations
that furnish 1t with food. They are
dealing In the kind of 'public utill.
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 aud the columns Of the presA
This year is the presidential year.
and on 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. aud 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 ablaze
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 eff.
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.
monwcalths.
We have not heard Of their saying
anything about sending unfit food into
the states where the authorities are
not SO honest.
According to all accounts. much bo-
racic acid and supplies. rs well as
many dyes. are used by packers. and 1t
II against these preservatives 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 direc-
ton In past years.
We do not know whether borlc acid
and SUPPLIES are used by the big Chi
cago packers now or not. rs city In
spectors have been withdrawn from
the large houses.
Showing the effect Of borlc acid and
Of the borates. the following Is repro
duced from pages II and IL. Of Part
2, OF the Fifteenth Annual Report Of
EFF. Ladd, food commissioner Of North
Dakota:
zee the use OF borax and
boric acid lnterferes with the alb
sorption Of food and causes the excre'
tion Of an abnormally large amount OF
nitrogen. He believes 1t Is demon
strated that large doses OF bcric acid
reduces the body weight and that the
excretion Of these substances from the
body Is 10 slow that their accumulation
in the body Is probable. Borax and
boric acid cause dluresls. which may
produce damage Of the kidneys; the!
NAV cause skin disturbances they
NAV produce diarrhGa they interiors
with the abnormal absorption OF food
and they may produce vomiting. The
conclusion IL that the use OF bori'
compounds In food should be forbid
dem"
On page l2 OF the same part OF thu
same report. the North Dakota 1000
commissioner has this to say about tin
use Of sodium supplies In meats:
Our own studies with sausages ant
hamburger steak indicate that iron
90 to O.30 per cent OF supplies are
employed In these meats. As to tn
harmfulness OF these products a recen
article by DIR. Harrington, OF Harv
ard Medical College. entitled Sodium
sulphIte; a Dangerous Food Preserva
tive gives the results OF his inyesti
cations and from this we quote thu
following.
cit Is classed as a food preserva
tive. but It's antiseptic properties arr
comparatively feeble 1t Is used mor'
especially on account OF Its eject oil
the appearance Of the food to which i
Is added. its preventative influence be
ing decidedly a minor consideration. i
confers upon minced meat (choppet
meat) an abnormally brilliant red col
or. which conveys to the purchaser TIN
idea OF freshness. Persistlng MS i
does, meat which Is In reality well al
vanced In decomposition Is readily dis
posed OF as perfectly fresh, for although
the number OF bacteria per grain ma,
run as high as 800 millions, II ma!
give of no marked odor. IL may fairl!
be said that on account Of Its masking
decomposition, II is an undesirable
admIxiure'"
Certainly, then. with these facts be
fore us, we do not believe that the PEG
pie OF North Dakota wish TO allow tn
indIscrIminate use Of these drugs AM
chemicals In their food products
The following standards are lal'
down for food control work, In til
game report, page 13:
Preserved meats; Ham, bacor
dried beef and cured meats shout
I've preserved h. smoke, desiccatioI
salt and sterilization only.
sausages: Sausages are finely div