10-4 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



entirely impennous, it follows that in the thinner coats the imperfec- 

 tions in the coutin<; are laro:er and more numerous. A<;ain, the iron 

 })lates employed for coatiii<:; with tin vary in weif^ht according to the size 

 and character of the package. Tin plate of good quality has been 

 found to be suitable for the prcsei"vation of the majority of foods, 

 but when the receptacles are made of inferior plate, not only is the 

 tin dissolved in quite large quantities so as to impair the healthfulness 

 of the product, but the coloring matter in many articles of food is 

 unnecessarily destroyed. Some strongly acid foods attack even the 

 better grades of tin, as, for instance, in the case of sardines in mus- 

 tard, w'here practically all of the inner coating of the cans may be dis- 

 solved in a few weeks. It is highly desirable that a container be found 

 which will be both economical and hygienic, and which will afford 

 inexpensive packages of proper strength yielding no foreign constitu- 

 ents to their contents. 



BLEACHED FLOUK. 



The trial of two bleached-flour cases during the year was accom- 

 panied by the continuation of certain scientific inquiries furnishing 

 data on the effects of bleaching. These have included studies made 

 at the St. Paul and Chicago inspection laboratories w4th special 

 reference to the grade or quality of flour bleached and the detection 

 of lower grade flours bleached and labeled as Patent, and the com- 

 parative effects of bleaching and aging on the physical properties 

 and chemical composition of the product, using patent and clear 

 flours from 15 different localities. Pharmacological studies on the 

 effect of nitrites on smaller animals were also made. 



DRUG INSPECTION AND RELATED RESEARCHES. 

 IMPORTED DRUGS. 



The quality of crude drugs, especially those received at the New 

 York port, continues to improve. During the present fiscal year 

 alone the character of certain drug importations has changed mark- 

 edly for the better, as, for example, in the case of henbane, the impor- 

 tation of the spurious variety having been abandoned, and saffron, 

 no longer containing excessive amounts of st^^les, or calendula florets 

 colored with coal-tar dye, etc. The inferior materials now received 

 are due principally to careless handling and curing rather than to 

 gross adulteration. The medicinal preparations received, however, 

 continue to be characterized in many cases by mislabeling as to the 

 presence of alcohol, ether, opium, morphine, etc., or extravagant or 

 misleading claims as to their efficacy. An especially reprehensible 

 practice is the importation of cough lozenges, tonic pills, etc., con- 

 taining opium or morphine. Sometimes these are offered especially 

 for the use of those addicted to the morphine habit, and again as a 



