The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-11-15
Frederic Haskin's Lettsf'
The Milk Shortage.


cheap enough to be within N,
of everyone it is equally INIT, s
that milk. of all foods. shor'1 ai
clean. a b
Washington Is one of ~.
where an argument over clss, qua
is now in progress. Thu s. Itt
has fought for good milk ,paa
time when people began ia ns
stand that there was sues ssser.
as pure and impure milk. cn,sa'ns
OF presidents, congressman. S,s,a h
mats and federal employees :, s'so
pendent on the purity of ths ~ Y
ington milk supply and tia ~
officer of the district is in.;..l
that the government work..
their families shall not h...
worry over epidemics cans.S y
milk.
Twenty-Five years ago. No..
save a few scientists thought
much about milk as a disess.
rier, but about that TINA ~
Berliner, inventor OF Imports. ~. y
vices connected with the te,snsss.
and talking machine and for 49,
years president of the Mr..
losis society Of Washington 49,
to be interested in milk Aa
Mr.. Berliner's baby near,, ~,
and the inventor was conv,...s
that impure milk was respons'ss.
He began to inquire about ccnS;
tons in diaries, chance for II.
terra to be transmitted frcm y.
COW and the mixer into thu MIN
chances Of infection from theas ~.
terra. Mr.. Berliner organi,sd .
milk society in Washington ga,
helped to get together the MOI = ~ !
porsant scientists and health :.
perts in the country for the V,s1
ington milk conference in 1907 n.
pointed out to the people that a.
baby in four died in Washinstom
in its first year, and that undnsM
eddy impure milk was the cauas 4,
a large percentage of these death,
! The truth of this claim is concsdaa
now. Whereas 20 years apn o,s
baby in four died, today. vih !
well-grarded milk supply, the lo.,
has been reduced to one baby n
! twelve.
Washington's present milk trr.
BILE is over the tuberculin tar
New York and Pennsylvania d,iryi
farmers offer TO supply the DistdtI
Of Columbia with milk at a slightly
cheaper rate than the Maryland ,ndI
Virginia farms, but they refuse To-
subject their cows to the tuberculjn'
test which is required of all dairis
supplying the capital.
Nearby Supply Is Best
This situation shows clearly
what is often claimed, that il d
better for a city to get its mflt
close at hand where inspection can
be enforced than to save a few
cents on milk that cannot be easily
guarded and is several days old be-
fore it can be delivered to the con-
sumner. Cheap milk from distant
dairy is doubtful bargain.
The tyberculin test, which health
officials are struggling to- obtain Of
to enforce is, MIR. Berliner points
cut, an elementary precautiun. 4
herd of cows is tested and none is
infected. = Six months later the test
is again made and one or several
cows are found tubercular. II the
disease was contracted shortly aft
er the first test. then the milk from
that herd may have been laden with
tubercle bacilli for several months.
The tuberculin test is valuable 10
the dairyman in that it may save
his entire herd from infection, but
it is not enough of protection Z
the public. To give the public
clean milk, Mr.. Berliner urges that
every city should insist on proper
pasteurization of its entire supply
OF milk and cream,
| Pasteurization destroys 80 per
cent of the bacilli which flourish
in milk, even from Well-managel
ldairies. Cleanliness in dairy farn'
ing is growing and the proportion
of pasteurized milk and cream Is
steadily increasing, through pres
sure of health officials and demands
of the public and also because 'le
dairy business is gradually separa''
ing from the general farm. spe'
cial precautions and ceremonles
that often seem so much e1ud
trouble to the busy farmer Hn'
sends a few gallons of milf u
town as a side line. become an az
, cepted part of the routine Oh
large dairy farm. -,
With growing efficiency IN 10Y
dairy business and the dairy ialm
ers organizing the milk outlook
more hopeful than it has pes.
though it will be some time oei sa
the United States IS raising 45,eav'
600 COWS instead of its present DC
/ of 23.O00.0O0 and everybody ~
drinking the proper amount OF MI
to keep his diet properly balances