Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-05-05

HAS POWERFUL QUALITIES,
COSTS LITTLE TO MAKE
Government Finds it's Use Harmful to
Digestion and Will Prohibit lts Use
-piseovsrsr Of Product Of Coal Tar
Reveals lite Dangerous ouaiitiss-An
Interesting History.
Especial Correspondence

Washington, May 5.-After July 1
next, the use of saccharin In food ar
ticles will be prohibited under the food
and drugs act. So runs what is Off
cially known as food inspection decis-
ion 1885," lately promulgated by the
secretaries Of the treasury, Of agricul-
ture and of the department of COM
MERGE and labor On the face of
things, this is not an order Of any
great Importance. But back of 1t Is
long story.
Suppose the housekeepers Of the
country knew OF a store where they
could buy 500 pounds Of sugar for
dollar. What would happen to the
storekeeper? 1t is easy to imagine that
he would be trampled down by the mob
of customers who were seeking to get
at him to make a purchase OF dol
Lars worth or less.
Were the use of saccharin to con-
unile unrestricted, II is not oVeTstasiH 8
it to say that sugar, cane and beet,
would be driven out Of business. For
saccharin has 500 times the sweetening
power OF sugar and costs but little
when its wonderful sweetening power
is considered. The present wholesale
prices Of sacchar;n ranges from dol
lar to dollar and quarter a pound.
In other words, based on the wholesale
price of the article, one can buy for
dollar the equivalent Of 500 pounds of
ordinary sugar.
Not q HeaIthfuI Food.
H40
against the use Of saccharin and it has
beey, found that its continued use for
a long time Is deleterious to health in
that It is liable to impair the digestion.
At the request of Secretary Wilson, OF
the department Of agriculture. the
referee board Of consulting scientific
experts. headed by Dr. Ira Remsen. the
pres lent OF Johns Hopkins University.
has made an investigation. This board
reports that the continuous use OF
saccharin for long time in quantities
over three-tenths Of q gram per day
is liable to impair digestion: and that
the addition Of saccharin as substd-
tute for cane sugar or other forms OF
sugar reduces the food value Of the
sweetened product and hence lowers ats
quality.
In accordance with this finding of
the referee board. the use OF saccharin
will be prohibited after July 1.
Dr.. Wiley indicated.
The decision just made is a vindica-
ton for DR.. Harvey w. Wiley, chief OF
the bureau OF chemistry. He has long
commended against the use OF saccharin.
From the first, he has insisted the
government ought not allow 1t to be
used. In commenting on the decision
not to permit it's use after July 1, he
said:
Before the matter was submitted to
the referee board held that saccharin
was harmful and dangerous. took the
ground from the first that It was SO.
I told President Roosevelt that it was
fraud and that its use ought not to
be allowed. I pointed out that 1t had
been declared harmful and dangerous
by other countries. The United States
Is one Of the last countries to take this
action. OF course. I am pleased that
it has been DONE"
Discovsrer Reveals Danger.
Probably the most remarkable fact
about this prohibition OF the use OF
!saccharin Is that it has come about
thru the agency Of the very man who
discovered it. DR.. Ira Remsen is the
and he is the man who, as head of the
Remsen board, has found against its
use. It was in 1879 that DR.. Remsen,
then professor Of organic chemistry al
Johns Hopkins together with DR.. Con-
stantine F'ahlberg, Of Germany. who
was working under him. discovered
saccharin. Fahlberg went back to
Germany taking with him the know
ledge Of the discovery took out patents
and proceeded to manufacture It. He
got rich out of it before the agrarian
interests Of Germany, wanting to pro-
| tect beet sugar, managed to get it's use
restricted and put under rigid govern
m ent control.
A Coal Tar Product.
Saccharin Is derived from benzoid
acid by chemical process and il
known chemically as benzoic sulphin-
ide. It Is one of the constituents OF
coal tar. Its sweetening capacity Il
nothing short Of astounding. One part
OF 1t in 10000 parts Of water can be
detected by taste. The slightest drop
OF It on the tongue produces taste Of
the most intense sweetness. a taste al
most indescribable. OF course, in view
OF its compare tive cheapness over
sugar, It was inevitable that Its wide
use should be attempted. It is Of q
white. crystalline color and the fact Il
Is harmful, could not be told except
thru such a series of careful expert
n7ents as the referee board has made.