The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1910-11-11

press: 1t is not our purpose to enter
into personal conflict with those
who have thus wronged us, but rather
to address ourselves to the public and
state a few facts that the woman in
| question did not have the fairness ia
even mention.
Calls It Slanderous Lecture.
We have on the statute books OF
Minnesota laws providing for compe-
tent and frequent inspection of all
bakeries in the state, and like places
of business furnishing foods to the
public, which inspection is under the
supervision of the food and dairy COM
missioner of the state, and the inspec-
ton is made by persons selected for
that purpose, after an examination as
to their qualifications, and these in
| spectOrs now do and for many years
| have inspected the bakeries of Man
kato several times a year, and have
never reported any of the unsanitary
and disgusting conditions that this
woman portrayed to the public in her
slandcrous lecture at the Presbyterian
church.
The city of Mankato also has a
health department, presided over by a
salaried officer in every way compe-
tent to judge sanitary conditions, and
he is aided by visiting inspectors who
examine bakeries and similar places
several times year, and these inspec-
tors have never discovered these awful
conditions.
We would like to ask why it is that
this woman did not state to the public
that we were operating our bakeries
under the supervision OF two legally
constituted boards of health, one state
and one local, and that so long as we
conducted our places of business to
their satisfaction we were doing all the
public could ask of us. If the dairy
and food commission department of
the state and our local health depart.
ment are so negligent and incompetent
that they cannot discover these things
by numerous inspections made each
year. and the public have to bring in
a woman from another state to do the
Carrie Nation" act, it will be well
to dispense with the cost of state and
local inspection and adopt some other
method, but in all fairness it ought
to be done in a way that will not
SANDER and ruin the business of peo-
pie who have been furnishing the citi-
zens of Mankato with bakery products
from five to forty years, without ever
before inviting such unjust criticism
or any criticism at ALL
And to be perfectly frank we wish
to say that we do not think the pa
pers of the city who have fattened
to some extent at our expense, and
who know US all so well, should have
scattered these SANDERS over the coun-
try quite so recklessly. We do not
object to having our bakeries inspect.
cd by any competent person and do
not object to meeting any require.
ments made upon us for the better
ment of the sanitary conditions of our
places of business, if it is within the
bounds of reason, and done in a bust.
ness-like. and just way.
Call 1t Hurry-Up Inspection. -.
We wish to say to the public and
our patrons that this woman's exami-
nation of our places OF business was
done within so short time and was
SO superficial and was so lacking in
thOroughness that she could not have
formed an adequate opinion as to
what fha copsf,rxr conditions l.
were, and to base the statements that
she uttered in public against our places
upon such hasty examination is
nothing less than criminal carelessness.
The most competent baker or other
person trained to the business would
not undertake to inspect sanitary con-
ditions in any bakery and make a
full report thereon in less than one
full days inspection of the premises,
the utensils and machinery used, the
processes of preparing and baking
bread and other products for the mar
ket, but here comes woman without
such training and in twenty minutes
draws conclusions which if one.half
of them were true ought to condemn
every bakery in the city.
We trust our patrons and the public
will be satisfied when they know this
that we have just reason to complain
of such treatment. To know whether
or not the production of food in a
bakery or elsewhere is done in way
and under conditions that are sani-
tary, the process of so doing from its
inception until the finished product is
on the counter for sale to the public
should be observed and understood,
and we as the bakers of the city do
not hesitate to say that our product
in its making from beginning to end
is handled in a way to keep it clean
and wholesome and free from anything
whatsoever that might in the least
contribute to creating illness in any
form in those who use it, and we defy
any person or persons in the CON-
munity to show that this statement
is not absolutely true. We know that
it is to our own best interests to see
that this is done, and to offer the pub.
lie products that are wholesome and
sanitary in every way, and it is our
constant aim to do so.
Processes Free From Filth.
We wish to say furthermore that
our processes are as free from filth or
anything that would render the prod.
uct unsanitary, as that produced in
the best private kitchens in the city,