Morris tribune., 1909-02-20
FIGHT FOR PURE FOOD
DR.. H. w. Wiley Tells How 1t Has
Shown Results.
BOUND TO WIN IN THE END.

BOUND TO WIN IN THE END.
/ Prediction of Chief Of National Chem
icaI Bureau. Who Says Nine-tenths
i of Manufacturers Are Now Turning
Out Unadulterated Products-Power
of Public In Aiding the Campaign.
DR.. H. w. Wiley, chief Of the bureau
| Of chemistry in the department of ag-
riculture at Washington, went to New
York recently to lecture at Columbia
university and look over the opera
tions of the New York government
! laboratories in the appraisers stores.
While he did not feel at liberty to say
anything about the recent overruling
of his decision that benzoate Of soda
was harmful. he did say that he
thought the pure food campaign had
been successful thus far and that it
was bound to win in the end.
"Of course you will understand that
| cannot place myself in the position
of criticising my superior officers"
said DR.. Wiley. my own personal
views regarding the use of benzoate
Of soda as preservative are known.
But my opinion has been set aside.
and now the law says that benzoate
of soda is harmless and may be en-
ployed at will by the manufacturers.
As that is the decision of my supe
riors, shall strive to uphold it as
best can.
II think we are having great success
in the pure food campaign. Both man.
ufacturers and consumers are realiz-
ing that it costs less in the long run
to make and eat uncontaminated sub
stances than stuff that has been boil
stored up by coloring matter and pre-
servatives. Nine-tenths Of the manu-
facturers are now turning out un-
adulterated products
''The rest. / am inclined to think,
will continue foisting adulterations on
the public as long as they are permitted
to do SO or as long as the public
will buy what they make. After all,
when you come right down to facts,
there is no particular reason why the
spurious preserved products should
sell. They are made and sold simply
because people can be found to buy
them. In way. then, it is the pub
lies fault Let consumers positively
demand that what they buy shall be
pure and they will get only pure arti
cles
"As a matter of fact, you don't
make anything by buying what isn't
pure. On the face of things, it may
seem that you do, but analysis dis
poses of the assumption. Take the
case Of catchup. which has been much
to the fore recently. You can buy
perfectly pure. good catchup for Is
cents a bottle. You can buy adulter-
ated catchup for 10 cents a bottle but
there is twice as much catchup. real
catchup, in the pure bottle, so that to
get as much in the adulterated article
you must pay 20 cents.
'The only reason the manufacturers
make spurious foods is that they are
avaricious. They can make a few
more cents by cheapening their prod
uct and using less expensive ingre-
dents. But more and more, I think,
they are beginning to appreciate that
honesty is the best policy. In other
words, the man who turns out food
that will stand the test Is the man
whose products will keep the market
longest and increase sales steadily.
I'm this respect 1t is encouraging to
note, as said, that manufacturers
representing in numbers and volume
Of business transacted more than nine
tenths OF the manufacturers Of the
United States are selling only un-
adulterated goods. recently attend
ed convention of Gamers, at which
there were 5000. delegates. Resolu-
tions were passed in favor Of the pure
food laws, and the delegates pledged
themselves to support them. That is
proof of the trend Of public sentiment.
sour great hope, though, lies in the
persistent education of the buying
public. 1t cannot be emphasized too
strongly that the final decision rests
with the consumer If he refuses to
buy impure foods no manufactures
will be willing to lose his money by
making stuff that cannot be sold 1t
is the gullible, the ignorant and the
careless who encourage manufacturing
Of impure food.
Most Of the canned goods on the
market today are guiltless Of adultera-
ton, and steady improvement is to be
noted in other things, such as pre-
serves, which are not steriliZed. We
are at any rate forcing the manufac-
turers to obey the law. For instance.
the wine producers are much more
honest than they used to be. Use of
false foreign labels on domestic wines
is rare. Many manufacturers have
come around to this view without un-
due pressure, and am applying moral
suasion to the remaining delinquents.
II that doesn't have the desired eff
feet I'll set the law on them
I'm the course of time, as people