26 PROCEEDINGS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



summer of 1887, by the public analysts, of which those from the 

 Toronto district were made in duplicate by the chief analyst and my- 

 self with closely concurrent i-esults, he using the asbestos and I the 

 paper method, I am convinced that even this standard of 8.5 per cent, 

 is too high. The average results for the whole Dominion were : — 

 Solids, 12.48 per cent.; fat, 3.86 per cent.; solids not fat, 8.62 per 

 cent. This average leaves but little margin for variation, and as a 

 matter of fact, in many of the samples, the solids not fat fell below 8.5 

 per cent. 



Dr. Cassidy asked what was considered a good percentage 

 of fat. 



Dr. Ellis answered 3.5 per cent, of fat. The minimum, he 

 considered, to be about 1.5 per cent ; 2.5 per cent, is not un- 

 common. From a herd of cows the butter-fat may fall as low 

 as 2.5 without there being any adulteration. He thought that 

 a limit should be fixed by law at which milk should be sold 

 He had recommended in his report that if the milkman 

 protested against the analysis, the analysis should be made 

 from the milk of the cow. The cow that gave the best milk 

 belonged to a man who took a pride in grooming his cows, 

 keeping everything very clean and giving them good fodder. 



The President remarked on the importance of milk analysis. 

 In his own family he found sickness was caused by the use of 

 the milk. The cows had fed on the banks of the Don, and 

 typhoid fever had resulted. 



A paper was also read on the " Detection of Methyl Alco- 

 hol in Commercial Spirits," prepared by Drs. Ellis and Babing- 

 ton. The authors show that the admixture of methyl alcohol 

 with ethyl alcohol may be readily ascertained by Victor 

 Meyers' vapour density apparatus, and propose this method as 

 test for the purity of commercial spirits. 



