52 DAIRY TECHNOLOGY 



and enteritis among infants during the fiscal year following 

 the enactment of the milk-inspection law in 1895, was 

 1 68 per 100,000 of population. The next year it fell to 151 ; 

 the third year to 136; and the fourth year to no. In 

 1903 it was 91; in 1905, 104; in 1906, 97. 



Infants' Milk Depots in New York. The improve- 

 ment of milk supply by pasteurization is demonstrated 

 by the reports of the Nathan Straus depots and the orphan 

 asylum on Randall's Island, New York City. 



In 1893, Nathan Straus established a depot for the dis- 

 pensing of pasteurized milk for infant feeding. In this 

 year 34,400 bottles of milk were dispensed; in 1906, 17 

 Straus stations dispensed 3,142,253 bottles and 1,078,405 

 glasses of pasteurized milk. 



Just prior to the beginning of this work by Straus, the 

 death rate of children under 5 years of age in New York 

 City was 96.2 out of every 1000. In 1906 the death rate 

 had fallen to 55 per 1000, due, in a large measure, to the 

 improvement of the milk supply by pasteurization. 



At the rate of mortality of 1892, there would have been 

 27,169 deaths of children under 5 years of age in 1906, 

 instead of the 15,534 that actually occurred. A general 

 milk inspection was in operation at this time, and no doubt 

 had some part in reducing the death rate. There were 

 other agencies at work which contributed toward accom- 

 plishing the same results, such as the campaign of fresh 

 air for children, use of diphtheria antitoxin, improved tene- 

 ment houses, etc. 



The efficiency of pasteurization under commercial con- 

 ditions is indicated in the following data collected in Chi- 

 cago in 1909. A bacterial examination of 829 samples 

 of milk during seven weeks ending September, 1909, 

 showed that the unpasteurized milk contained 5,547,502 



