MILK-SUPPLY OF LONDON WORKHOUSES. 43 



An investigation of the different milks supplied to the dif- 

 ferent London Unions (which was made by me for the 

 Government, at Mr. Rowsell's instance last year, and which 

 is published in Mr. Rowsell's "Keport on the System of Sup- 

 ply of Provisions for the Workhouses of the Metropolis"), 

 will furnish an illustration of this method of interpreting the 

 results of milk-analysis. 



A sample of milk was procured from each workhouse by 

 Mr. Rowsell at two different dates, and forwarded to me for 

 analysis. The analysis of the earlier sample is marked I. in 

 the following table, and that of the later sample is marked II. 

 Samples were also forwarded to Dr. Letheby, who arrived at 

 the same general results as myself; but either from his hav- 

 ing slightly different specimens, or from employing different 

 methods of analysis, his numbers sometimes exhibited some 

 considerable departures from my own. There was, however, 

 no difference in the practical effect of the two reports. 



On inspecting the table, it will be seen the milk from 

 twenty-eight Unions is reported upon. A well-known met- 

 ropolitan Union is conspicuous by its absence, and the report 

 would not be complete unless it were recorded that the West- 

 minster Union refused to furnish Mr. Eowsell with informa- 

 tion and samples.. 



Out of the fifty-six samples of milk only fifteen were 

 unwatered, or nearly unwatered. Nine of these fifteen were 

 skimmed, leaving only six that were at once unwatered and 

 unskimmed. Accordingly about 10 per cent, of the milk 

 supplied to London workhouses appears to be genuine. In 

 the years 1871 and 1872, I examined about a thousand 

 samples of milk bought in London for the Milk Journal, 

 and arrived at a similar conclusion as to the general condi- 

 tion of the milk-trade in the metropolis (vide the Supple- 

 ment to "Watt's Dictionary of Chemistry," article Milk- 

 Analysis, p. 830). 



