^^ERICA.]^ 



41st YEAR. 



CHICAGO, ILL,, DECEMBER 5, 1901, 



No, 49. 



\ * Editorial. * I 



The Cry of Adulterated Honey, 



heard lately in (.hieago, is bound to interfere 

 somewhat with the sales of the pure article. 

 The Daily Tribune, of this city, had the fol- 

 lowinjj in regard lo the subject, in its issue 

 of Nov. 15, introduced by a heading in large 

 type, " Law Stops Bogus Honey;'' 



tilucose honey, under the attractive guise 

 of " pure clover honey." is invading the Chi- 

 cago markets to such an extent that the 

 efforts of the State pure food inspectors are 

 largely directed toward investigations of this 

 imposition. t)ne entire carload of " honey," 

 consigned to J. Dawson, of the Western 

 Brokerage Co., 42 River street, from a Cali- 

 fornia firm, was barred from the markets yes- 

 terday except as a plainly labeled adultera- 

 tion. 



The analysisof the ■' honey " composing the 

 consignment showed that it contained from 

 50 to 60 percent of glucose, and as ' ' pure 

 honey " the stuff was condemned. The con- 

 signee had the choice of selling it as a glucose 

 mixture or of sending it back, and he chose 

 the latter course, at the same time cancelling 

 other orders which would have brought other 

 large quantities of the glucose honey into 

 Chicago. 



HARM IS TO THE PCRSE. 



Unlike many of the adulterations which 

 rtooif the market, the glucose honey is not re- 

 garded as an injurious mixture, and the Pure 

 Food Commissioners affirm that the imposi- 

 tion on the purchaser is one which injures 

 his pocket-book and not his health. The 

 dealer has the right to sell the " honey " un- 

 der the label of glucose mixture, and as such 

 it is worth about one-fifth as much as real 

 honey. 



One complainant. Dr. A. .J. Park, 52U East 

 Fiftieth street, said : 



" I know of no place in Chicago where one 

 can purchase a jjound of pure honey. I 

 called the attention of my grocer to the fact 

 that his tin cases of "white clover honey' 

 was nianufactiii'etl stulT made up of glucose 

 and paraffine. He at once called on his South 

 Water street merchant aud demanded that his 

 money be refunded, or that the merchant dis- 

 close the name and place of the party from 

 whom he got the mixture, but he declined." 



Similar complaints have been received by 

 the Pure Food Commission, and investigations 

 have resulted in the preparation of a list of 

 offenders against whom suit will be brought 

 for violation of the pure-food laws. 



now TO DETECT IMPOSITION. 



Commissioner Jones said it was compara- 

 tively easy for a purchaser to detect the im- 

 position. 



'■Genuine honey," hedeclared, "has brown 

 coloring around the cells. Glucose honey is 

 perfectly white. The purchaser can detect 

 tha fraud by this simple rule. Honey, but- 

 ter, and vinegar are the three articles in the 

 purchase of which citizens are most subject 

 to imposition just at present, and they are 



causing most of the work for the commission. 

 Syrups may be classed with honey in this 

 respect. 



In the issue of the Tribune for Oct. Iti I the 

 next day) appeared the cartoon which we re- 

 produce herewith, and which only added in- 

 sult to the injury done by publishing the in- 

 terviews with Dr. Park and Commissioner 

 Jones. 



As soon as we could give attention to the 

 matter, we wrote the following reply to the 

 foregoing, and took it in person to the 

 Tribune office, together witB a beautiful sec- 

 tion of white honey from our own apiary, and 

 also a glass jar of the absolutely pure article: 



Chicago. Nov. 19. 1901. 

 Editor The Tribune — 



Mil Deiir Sir : — I desire to call your atten- 

 tion, as well as that of your readers, to sev- 

 eral matters that appeared in your esteemed 



paper last week. Quite unwittingly you did 

 a great injustice to an honest and honorable 

 industry — that of bee-keeping or honey-pro- 

 duction. Being somewhat of a representalive \ 

 of the bee-keepers of this country, I deem it 

 due my constituency, as well as due the gen- 

 eral reading public, that I endeavor to correct 

 so far as jiossible the misleading statenu-nls 

 that were puhished. 



First, permit me to say that bee-keepers 

 as a class are [uost persistently opposed to the 

 adulteration of honey: their representative 

 periodicals al^o have done all in their power 

 to aid not only ilie enactment but the active 

 enforcement of laws intended to prohibit the 

 adulteration of honey, or compelling the mix- 

 ers of the eouibless article to label it ac- 

 cording to its exact ingredients. Then if 

 people desire to I'Urchase and eat glucose 



combined with honey, they •' pays their 

 money and takes their choice.'' 



In the alleged interview with Mr. Jones, 

 the Pure Food Commissioner of Illinois, as 

 published, he is made to say : 



"Genuine honey has a brown coloring 

 around the cells. Glucose honey is perfectly 

 white. The purchaser can detect the fraud 

 by this simple rule." 



Permit me to say that the above would be 

 important if it were true. Unfortunately, or 

 fortunately, there is no truth in it. First, 

 much genuine comb honey is perfectly white 

 in appearance: and, second, there is no glu- 

 cose comb honey produced. 



Again. Dr. A. J. Park, in the same item, is 

 credited With this paragraph : 



" I know of no place in Chicago where one 

 can purchase a pound of pure honey. I 

 called the attention of m.v grocer to the fact 

 that his tin cases of ' white clover honey ' was 

 manufactured stuff made up of glucose and 

 paraffine. He at once called on his South 

 Water street merchant and demanded that his 

 money be refunded, or that the merchant dis- 

 close the name and place of the party from 

 whom he got (he mixture, but he declined.'' 



It is almost exasperating to oqe who is at 

 all ac(|uaiated with the honey business to 

 read such a paragraph as that. Of course, 

 even doctors ought not to be supposed to 

 know everything, and so Dr. Park perhaps 

 should not be blamed for not knowing where 

 in all Chicago he could get a pound of pure 

 honev But there are tons upon tons of abso- 

 luteh i>uie honey in Chicago at almost any 

 time of The veil. I can take the innocent 

 Doc tor to see several carloads of the genuine 

 ai tide anj time he will accompany me. 



Dr Park also conveys the idea that there is 

 such a thing as manufactured comb honey — 

 the comb made of paraffine and tilled with 

 glucose I want to say that the Doctor has 

 now an excellent opportunity to get a larger 

 sni^li tee thin he ever has received, or will 

 111 ( h 1 \ti iec( ive in the future if his medical 

 knowlciUei on a par with his information 

 alioul pule honey. There has been an offer 

 ot 4,1000 standing, but unclaimed, for 20 

 jeais, to anj one who would find and present 

 a single pound of comb houev which bees 

 had no part in manufacturing. That offer is 

 open yet, and I will personally guarantee that 

 it is bonafide. or will make a similar offer. 

 Now. gentlemen, either present that pound of 

 manufactured comlj honey, " or for ever after 

 hold your peace '' about it. 



It is very unfortunate that the daily press 

 does not seek its information concerning such 

 matters from those who are in a position to 

 know. It certainly would not go to a black- 

 smith to learn of tiie produclionof silk ; tlien 

 why should it ae,-ept the liielum of ihose who 

 don't know a lice from liou.^elly. when tlicy 

 desire information on honey-production ; 



I do not believe that The Tribune would 

 willingly injure any honest industry, but in 

 publishing such matter as I have referred to. 

 and also the cartoon on " How doth the little 

 busy bee," in the Nov. Kith issue, it is placing 

 before its readers untruths, and at the same 

 time doing untold injury lo the producers of 

 genuine honey throughout the whole country. 

 Yours very truly, 



George W. York. 

 fAllf„r Amirii-.iN llei' Jonnial. 



As a result, a few days later the following 

 appeared in The Tribune : 



