LXXVIII THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
The Analysts of France, Germany, and other European countries have 
co-operated nobly in the work of advancing our knowledge of the subject, 
and a vast and ever growing literature of Food and Drugs exists at the 
present day. To this important literature, quite extensive contributions 
have been made, since 1887 by our own laboratories. 
In 1890 the Canadian Adulteration Act was revised; and a Section 
was introduced empowering the Governor-in-Council to “ Establish 
a standard for, and to fix the limits of variability permissible in any 
article of food or drug, the standard of which is not established by a 
pharmacopæia or other recognized work.” 
This important change marks an epoch in the working of the Act. 
Up to this time it was the duty of the Analyst to endeavour to interpret 
the results of his analysis by reference to such recorded analyses of 
genuine samples of the same food species, as might be available to him. 
Such analyses were ofttimes not to be had, and even when available, 
they were too often obtained by methods of working so different from 
those employed by him, as to make the comparison of doubtful value; 
for it must be remembered that the methods of food chemistry are 
seldom those of ultimate analysis, but are usually directed towards the 
numerical valuation and expression of proximate constituents, which 
numerical expression may vary greatly as one or another mode of 
working is employed. Every practical analyst will readily call to mind 
illustrations of this fact; but determinations of volatile fatty acids in 
butter, of fat in milk, and especially in sugared condensed milk; of 
amido-compounds in meats, and of alkaloids in tea, coffee, and many 
drugs, may be instanced. Then, too, products of another country, 
bearing the same name, may vary so much, from local causes, as to 
render analytical results obtained abroad quite inapplicable to the 
interpretation of work done in Canada. For example, the comparison 
of Canadian Ale or Beer, Butter, Cheese, Cider, Flour, Honey, Jam, 
Ketchup, Lard, Maple Products, Milk, Pickles, Sausages, Vinegar, 
Wine, with articles of identical names produced in other lands, might 
be quite unwarrantable. 
It thus becomes necessary to consider not only an increase in the 
number of recorded analyses of genuine foods, but the putting on 
record of results obtained with typical Canadian products. 
When, in 1884, a reorganization of the Food Service, with appoint- 
ment of a Chief Analyst, was made, this matter of the establishment 
of standards for various classes of food, was recognized; and when, 
in 1887, the publication of reports in Bulletin form was undertaken, 
the first of such bulletins had for its subject the question of a standard 
for milk. Up to the present time, 223 bulletins have been issued by 
the Laboratories of the Inland Revenue; and all of these have kept 
‘we 
