Evening star., 1923-09-16

iLldHIAuOIn- uatTy' l. anu a
palatlal hog plant where food
products of the best quality
and maximum sanitation are produced
IN great Quantities are queer supple
ments TO the efficient equipment Of
the United States Naval Academy
over az Annapolis. but If you will but
take The time to browse through the
facts and figures ina; follow. the
chances are you will be convinced
that Uncle Sam acted well and wisely
when he added agricultural activities
to his matchless training school for
naval officers
A decade or so ago, sickness and
disease were. unwelcome. guests at the
Annapolis institution entirely too fire.
quently for the potential well-being
of the future admirais" Uncle Sam
became interested IN the case-turn-
ed loose his medical sleuths and sani-
tary detectives and finally ascertain
ed that the outstanding cause of the
indiscriminate invalid!sm was an tn
sanitary milk supply. 1t was just an
other application of the dietlcian's ma
tonal slogan, Tell me what you eat,
and I'll tell you what your are" re-
cruited to solve a scientific riddle.
During the year ending September.
1911, there were 1888 sick days caus-
ed by serious intestinal troubles re-
corded among T59 mIdshipmen. The
source OF disease was finally traced
to the milk supply, which at that
time was provided by an extensive
dairy farm. Sanitary examination and
bacterial tests of this milk showed
that IL positively teened with objec-
fionable bacterial organisms. as many
as 100000 per cubic centimeter be-
ing found in some of the samples. In
spection of the dairy herd indicated
that at least one-half of the cattle
were infected with tuberculosis. I'M
mediately. Uncle Sam terminated the
contract with the dairyman who was
then providing milk.
It was far from a simple matter to
obtain a large and dependable sani-
tary milk supply in the latitude of
Annapolis in those days. The mid
dies" consumed approximately 25o
gallons of milk daily. Dairy farmers
objected to supplying the Naval Acad-
emy with high-grade milk because
the food product was desired regular
ly only nine months In the year. This
meant that the producers would have
to seek another market for their
product during the summer quarter
of the year. when milk Is always most
abundant on the Baltimore and Wash
ington markets.
=
T ULTIMATELY. the Naval Academy
~ authorities, in cooperation with
the United, States Department of
Agriculture decided that the best way
to solve the perplexing puzzle was for
the Naval Academy to maintain q
dairy herd OF its own and to produce
a homespun pure milk supply. Con-
gress supported the scheme by expe-
ditiously appropriattng $4,000 for
the erection of dairy barns and the
purchase of cows and equipment. A
small tract of land which today is
part of the golf course at the Naval
Academy was reQuisltioned for the
buildings and paddocks. Dairy stables
sprang up like the offspring of magic.
Cows of good breeding and quality
and free OF disease contamination
were assembled. In few months, the
hungry ''Tniddies' were consuming
some Of the purest milk ever produced.
Nowhere In the world have more
conclusive facts and figures compli-
mentary to an improved milk supply
ever been collected than at the United
States training school for naval Of
fcers. The first year that the mid
L. &rtr fbo
healthy, clean and we'll fed naval
cows sickness at the Annapolis insti-
tuition decreased very greatly. The
$50 midshipmen reported only 296
sick days, as compared with 1895 sick
days the preceding year, when the
milk was purchased and when the at
tendance was Is per cent greater. Not
a single case of typhoid fever was
recorded that year. In fact, not
single midshipman has contracted
this disease at the academy during
the last twelve years Medical ex-
perts attribute the improved health of
the youthful tars to the sanitary milk
supply.
Sickness at the Annapolis dormi-
tories is always maximum during the
month of November. as usually the
Army Navy foot ball game is played
at Philadelphia or New York city
during that month and the "middies'
fil up on goodies" and delicacies to
which they are not accustomed. The
records Of the last November in which
contract milk was drunk at the mid
dies mess" show $50 sick days, while
the figures for the following Eovem-
her, when the home-prodnced milk
was a regular part of the naval
dietary, emphasized the reduction OF
invalidism to the small minimum of
sixty sick days for the month.
Despite that. Iatterly, the enroll
nnent at the Naval Academy has in
creased greatly, being almost three
times as large as IT was a dozen years
ago. the cases of sickness among the
.,3uvenile sea captains" have been held
at a minimum. During a recent year
when 2,it9 midshipmen received their
mail regularly at Annapolis; only 100
sick days were reported on the regis
ter for the school year. Comparing
this record with the serious illness
that. prevailed the final year that an
ansanitary mink supply was used. re-
markabie data in ardent support OF
tf1e Better milk, better middies" slo-
gan come into the limelight. When
contract milk was drunk the sickness
was s4l'per cent greater.
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