190 Dairy Bacteriology. 



produced if he desired. The advent of the middleman in 

 the business, and the gathering of the milk from many 

 hundreds of farms, and its redistribution to thousands 

 of homes has made it impossible for the individual con- 

 sumer to learn anything of the conditions surrounding 

 production. When the individual cannot protect him- 

 self against fraud and unhealthful conditions, it is the 

 duty of the government to protect him. "This is the 

 theory underlying the modern control of food supplies, 

 water supplies, and of living conditions in general. Act- 

 ing on this basis the cities are seeking to control, to an 

 increasing degree, the healthfulness and cleanliness of 

 the milk supply. 



Formerly such control as was given was largely with 

 reference to the composition of the milk, the regulations 

 providing that it should contain not less than a minimum 

 amount of fat and other solids, and be free from preserv- 

 atives. The more modern regulations are much more 

 complex and touch every phase of production and hand- 

 ling that can, in any way, affect the value of the milk as 

 human food. 



Municipal regulations. The different cities vary 

 widely in the methods employed to secure a satisfactory 

 milk, supply. Rules and regulations are adopted to 

 which the producer and dealer must conform. In order 

 to ascertain whether the regulations are being obeyed, 

 two types of examinations may be made: first the in- 

 spection of the farms and of the plants of the dealers; 

 second the examination of the milk itself with reference 

 to its chemical composition, bacterial content and tem- 

 perature. 



The city of New York is doing more to safeguard and 

 to improve its milk supply than any other large city in 



