84 ANNUAX, REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



paints, fats, and oils, principally for the Bureau of Engraving and 

 Printing; 301 samples were examined for the Department of Agri- 

 culture; 1,217 for the General Supply Committee; and 310 for the 

 Isthmian Canal Commission. 



INSPECTION OF FOODS AND DRUGS. 



The inspection force of the Bureau of Chemistry collected 9,500 

 official samples of foods and drugs during the fiscal year, and 2,000 

 additional samples for use in scientific investigations relating to the 

 enforcement of the food law, providing data on which 312 seizures 

 were based. Each of these samples was referred to the appropriate 

 laboratory at Washington or to one of the 21 branch inspection labo- 

 ratories, the reports from the latter points showing that 3,280 inter- 

 state samples were found to be legal and 3,113 misbranded or adul- 

 terated, while 503 check analyses were made to insure that correct 

 results were obtained before recommending action on the samples. 

 In connection with this work 5,370 hearings were held, less thaji half 

 being by correspondence. There were 96,129 floor inspections made 

 of imported products, of which over half were made at New York. A 

 total of 9,698 imported foods and drugs were analyzed at these ports, 

 of which number 3,085 were adjudged adulterated or misbranded 

 and 1,268 were released without prejudice to future shipments. The 

 miscellaneous samples examined at the branches aggregated 1,406, 

 making a total of 18,000 samples. 



In this connection there must be considered the analyses made 

 at the Washington food and drug inspection laboratories and at the 

 special laboratories handling specific classes of materials, such as 

 the dairy products, waters, cattle foods, flavoring extracts, and 

 essential oils. Here check analyses are made and all cases prepared 

 for the consideration of the Solicitor, in addition to the original 

 analyses made for inspection or investigation work. Approximately 

 752 samples are reported by the drug-inspection laboratories, of 

 which 529 were domestic products; 231 of these were found to be 

 adulterated or misbranded. The Food Inspection Laboratory proper 

 reports 2,067 domestic samples and 1,097 imported foods, largely 

 check samples on branch laboratory reports; in this laboratory 

 2,142 cases were prepared for consideration. In addition the Food 

 Technology Laboratory reports 108 initial and check samples and 185 

 cases prepared on extracts and essential oils; the Dairy Laboratory 

 reports 320 oflScial interstate and import samples and the prepara- 

 tion of 347 cases; the Water Laboratory 200 samples, only 39 being 

 of foreign origin, of which 11 were misbranded, while 39 of the 

 161 interstate samples were considered illegal and 6 seizures were 

 made; of the 500 interstate samples of cattle and poultry foods 76 

 were found to be adulterated or misbranded. This total of 3,672 



