42 Report of the Department of Bacteriology of the 



SUMMARY OF PAST CONDITIONS. 



In order to make the results of the study of sanitary conditions 

 surrounding the production of milk in this city more easily under- 

 stood the inspection findings were grouped as indicated on the score 

 card (page 39) under the following headings: Poor, including filthy 

 conditions; medium, where conditions were merely dirty; good, 

 where conditions were fairly clean; excellent, where they were both 

 clean and sanitary. 



A careful initial inspection in 1907 showed that 5 per ct. of the 

 dairies were " good," 57.5 per ct. " medium " and 37.5 per ct. 

 " poor." The influence of publicity was immediately brought to 

 bear on the situation. Gradually the milk producers and retailers 

 became convinced of the accuracy and usefulness of the official 

 scores, with the result that by the beginning of 1911 practically 

 all of the milk was being sold by the producers to the retailers on 

 sliding-scale contracts. These contracts stipulated that the milk 

 must be produced and delivered in accordance with the requirements 

 of the board of health and that the price for each quarter should 

 be based upon the official score given the producer by the board 

 of health, no milk to be accepted when below the grade of medium 

 and the price to increase one-half cent per quart with each grade 

 above. The economic force which made profitable the payment of 

 this bonus for better grades of milk was the publicity given by the 

 board of health to the sanitary conditions present in each dairy 

 as well as the name of the person or firm retailing the milk in the 

 city. Under such conditions each retailer found it financially 

 profitable to stimulate the production of cleaner milk because of 

 the influence of the official report upon the public demand for his 

 goods. 



Under the joint action of these two factors, publicity and payment 

 based on quality, the sanitary conditions surrounding the milk 

 supply steadily improved until the report for March, 1911, showed 

 that 12.8 per ct. of the dairies ranked as " excellent " and 87.2 per 

 ct. " good." The " poor " grade had disappeared quickly before 

 the light of publicity and the " medium " grade had decreased 

 steadily and finally had disappeared. 



Thus, by the observance of the simplest economic laws, an ex- 

 ceptionally satisfactory milk supply was provided at a cost to the 

 municipality of $500 per year for the additional salary of the sanitary 

 inspector. It should be noted, however, that the vital point in 

 this plan was the voluntary acceptance by all parties of the official 

 scores of the dairies as a satisfactory basis for doing business. 



FINANCIAL MAGNITUDE OF THE MILK BUSINESS. 



In response to the general public demand for better milk supplies 

 attempts at improvement have been made in practically all of the 

 larger, and in many of the smaller, cities. Too frequently these 



