57 



butter and oleomargarin, and people do not want anything else foisted upon them, 

 and tlie laws can not be too stringent in this regard. I believe the State of New 

 York has been very wise in passing laws prohibiting the sale of oleomargarin in 

 any form whatever. I believe laws of this kind are necessary to protect the dairy 

 interests against its introduction, and I do not believe it can be done in any half way 

 manner whatever. Nobody can deny that oleomargarin is a legitimate article of 

 commerce so long as it is sold under its proper name, but you can not prevent its 

 being sold very largely as butter. I do not believe it is possible to prevent oleo- 

 margarin taking the place of at least 30 per cent of the butter sold, but it will take 

 its place at the price of butter; that is, they will sell oleomargarin under the name 

 of butter ; and I do not believe, furthermore, that under that plan it is possible to 

 keep it out. 



USE AND ADULTERATION OF MILK. 



The Morning Oregonian, a paper that makes no mistakes when talk- 

 ing upon a subject in which its readers are directly interested, says : 



The fight against butterin and oleomargarin is one that has been waged fiercely 

 between those who desire to protect the human stomach from being made an unwill- 

 ing receptacle for the cast-off oils and fats of pork houses, and those who see in the 

 process an enormous pecuniary profit. Spurious butter, however attractive it may 

 be made to appear, has only to be known by its name to be repudiated as containing 

 all the possibilities of filth concealed by the. cunning of the manufacturer from the 

 perception of taste, sight, and smell. 



Then comes the pepsin "racket," which is as follows: 1 pint of milk, 1 ounce 

 of salt, 6 grains of pepsin, 12 grains of sodium sulphate, and 1 pound of butter. 

 Warm the mixture to blood heat, then agitate or churn the mixture, and the result 

 will be 2 pounds 1 ounce and 18 grains of good-looking butter. A glance at this 

 compound will show that it is within a few ounces of being half water, and if 

 it should happen that the pound of butter used had over 14 per cent water, then the 

 compound would be half water. 



As far back as history goes we find milk spoken of as a most important and pala- 

 table article of food, and in ancient times it was considered to contain many hidden 

 virtues. Boerhave appears to have been the first to make a qualitative examination 

 of milk, and speaks at some length on the danger of using milk from diseased or 

 improperly fed animals. Milk is a fluid secreted by the mammary glands of animals 

 for the support and nourishment of their young, and consists of an emulsion of fats 

 in a solution of casein and sugar, together with certain inorganic salts. The color 

 of milk is due to the fat globules, which can be readily seen with the aid of a 

 microscope. It is claimed that 222,000,000 of these globules will not more than fill an 

 inch square of space. Up to the seventeenth century only three of the constituents 

 of milk had been discovered, viz, butter, cheese, and whey. Even birds and plants 

 secrete a fluid similar in composition to milk. In civilized countries cow's milk is 

 principally consumed; in Africa, that of the camel; in Tartary and Siberia, that of 

 the mare ; in India, the buffalo's ; in' Lapland, the reindeer's ; in China, until a 

 comparatively recent date, sow's milk was generally consumed. Milk is especially 

 adapted for the support of the young of animals, because it contains all the com- 

 ponents of a mixed food, each for its kind. 



An examination of the needs of the body shows that definite amounts of carbon, 

 hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen are required daily, depending on the amount lost 

 by the body and the organs used. An excess beyond this is needed by the young 

 animal to furnish material for growth. In milk, casein supplies the nitrogen; sugar 

 and fat, in a great measure, the carbon; the salts, the mineral constituents; and 

 the water, the water needed by the body. It is for this reason that cow's milk must 

 be diluted before being given to infants, as the percentage of casein is too large. 

 Should it not be diluted then the infant has to digest the excess of casein, and so 

 give its digestive organs more work to do, thus permanently injuring them. 



