476 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



sitioii of sorghum sirups of known purity, and another to determine 

 the amount of alum in pickles. 



A somewhat extensive investigation of edible gelatins is now under 

 ■way to establish methods for their analysis and examination as to 

 origin, commercial purity, and wholesomeness. 



Inspection of imported food and drug products is personally con- 

 ducted at St. Paul and Minneapolis and extended to Duluth by cor- 

 respondence. Of the 87 samples analyzed, 13 were found to be 

 illegal. Two lots containing 39 cases of moldy and decomposed shelled 

 walnuts were condemned and destroyed by fire. The remaining prod- 

 ucts were misbranded only and were permitted entry after being 

 satisfactorily labeled. Miscellaneous examinations were made at 

 the request of the local quartermaster of the War Department and 

 the agents of the Treasury Department at St. Paul, Minneapolis, and 

 Duluth. 



The general interstate work has been somewhat irregular, owing 

 to the absence of the chief from the station in attendance at court at 

 St. Louis, Mo., New^ Orleans, La., and Kansas City, Mo., and assist- 

 ing in the bleached-flour investigation. 



Of the 191 interstate samples examined about 29 per cent were 

 illegal, the greater number being cereal products, of which nearly 

 one-third were either adulterated or misbranded. 



SAN FRANCISCO LABORATORY. 



The study of oriental drugs, begun last year, has been continued, 

 and progress has been made in collecting data for their classification. 

 A considerable amount of collaborative work has been done on meth- 

 ods of analysis of various food products, and some on methods for 

 the detection of rice which has been polished with limestone. Experi- 

 ments have also been made on special methods of analysis with a view 

 to expediting inspection work. 



Of the 1,443 samples of food and drug products examined, ap- 

 proximately 30 per cent were imported and 70 per cent were inter- 

 state samples. The actual number of import samples examined, how- 

 ever, is 54 per cent less than last year, while the domestic products 

 have increased 95 per cent. 



Of the import samples examined, 47 per cent were found illegal, 

 while of the domestic products 44 per cent were in violation of the 

 law. The most important classes of imported products are : Distilled 

 liquors, 74 per cent illegal; fermented liquors, 53 per cent illegal; 

 fruit juices, 66 per cent illegal ; fruit products, 77 per cent illegal ; and 

 oils, 65 per cent illegal. Of the interstate samples, the principal 

 items are : Fruit products, 31 per cent illegal ; saccharine products, 63 

 per cent illegal ; flavoring extracts, 66 per cent illegal ; spices, 48 per 

 cent illegal; cereal products, 50 per cent illegal; coffee and cocoa, 59 

 per cent illegal ; fermented liquors, 72 per cent illegal ; and drugs, 41 

 per cent illegal. Many of the illegal food cases were based on tech- 

 nical misbranding, only a small number of the total being due to 

 adulteration. In the case of illegal drugs, however, practically all of 

 the samples found to be illegal were adulterated either by substituting 

 one substance for another or by adding some foreign and inert 

 material. 



The year has seen a considerable decrease in the number of adul- 

 terated and misbranded food products coming from abroad. This is 



