178 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



tion as to the methods employed in coiifkicting this Hue of 

 business. In answering tlie questions required on this report, 

 the general conditions of the store in question are noted; the 

 cleanliness of the 'prescription counter; tiie number of regis- 

 tered clerks employed, etc. Information is also given as tc the 

 marking of shelf and stock bottles with the alcohol con.tent, 

 as required iby law, and, if sod'a fountains are operated^ a 

 special rep>ort is made regarding the sanitation, cleamliniess of 

 glasses and other utensils, and the source of the sirups used, 

 and if preservatives or atttifioial coloring are emiployed, a 

 report of the announcemenit of this fact. 



When technical violations have been reported by the in- 

 spectors, the matter has been taken up in an educational way 

 and a letter of warning relaitive to the general unsanitary con- 

 ditions, imtp roper marking of bottles, or the absence of a 

 card announcing the use of preservatives and artificial color- 

 ing, etc., has been sent to the offender. Numerous letters 

 have also been written calling the attention of dealers to the 

 faot thjat care should be taken in dispensing Spirit oi Nitrous 

 Ether, informing them of the danger in sellinig this prepara- 

 tion that deteriorates so rapidly with age, advising them that 

 only a small quantity sho'uld 'be made at a time and that !lx>ttles 

 purchased from wholesalers should bear a limiting date. In- 

 spectors hiave been instrudted to discourage, as far as possible, 

 the sale of S'weet S'pirit of Nitre in city grocery stores and to 

 recommend that the sale of this preparation be undertaken by 

 druggists only. It would dk^ubtless work considerable hard'- 

 ship to have the sal'e discontinued in the country grocery 

 stores, as this is a substance for which there is considerable 

 demand, but an attempt li!as been made to regulate such sale 

 and, as stated above, the sale in city grocery stores has been 

 adivlsed against and the trade given to drug stores, where 

 proper care should be taken in dispensing this product. 



Aside from the general inspections as an educational feature 

 during the year, drug samples were collected and analyzed, 

 care having been taken to m'ake the sampling and colledtions 

 as complete as possible in the towns visited. For the most 

 part, the articles collected were of the druggists' own manu- 

 facture, while in a few instances iit developed that the samples 

 were purchased from wholesalers. In a few cases the sam- 



