64 CONFERENCE ON MILK PROBLEMS 



At the same time I would remind you that a similar method 

 has developed our system of national maritime quarantine, so 

 that such information relative to notifiable diseases as is avail- 

 able, is compiled through cooperation. This principle, when 

 put into practice, will do much for the improvement of public 

 health administration. 



THE CHAIRMAN: Of course, the problem of milk supply and the 

 public health is most acute in the biggest cities. We are all 

 proud of the fact that the City of New York maintains a Re- 

 search Department in connection with its health work, and those 

 of us who know Dr. Park are proud of the fact that Dr. Park is 

 the head of that laboratory. I have great pleasure in presenting 

 him to you. 



Dr. PARK spoke as follows: 



BACTERIAL CONTAMINATION OF MILK AS 

 A CAUSE OF DISEASE 



MR. CHAIRMAN, AND LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: Recently I 

 was at a meeting of a milk conference in New York, and after 

 talking to the members upon the bacteria question, one of the 

 dealers said, "I think there is altogether too much of 'bacteria' 

 in this milk agitation." I confess that there has been an em- 

 barrassing amount of "bacteria" in the talks that we have 

 been having this evening, and there were certain things that I 

 was going to speak of that have been so well spoken of by 

 Commissioner Evans and by Dr. Kerr, that I can simply say, 

 to everything except, perhaps, the city cow, that I absolutely 

 agree with them. And I think perhaps that I can do best by 

 cutting out a good deal of the general talk that I was to give, 

 and devoting my time to other things to which I have given 

 special attention, or rather to which the colleagues of mine 

 who are working in the laboratory, have given special atten- 

 tion. I think, therefore, I will confine myself principally to 

 the infant milk. 



As Commissioner Evans has said, all of those who are work- 

 ing on the milk problem, whether they be inspectors or phy- 

 sicians or laboratory men, are coming more and more to be- 

 lieve that we must have a certain quantity of infants' milk, and 

 also milk which can be taken by those who wish to pay for 

 clean drawn milk. Then, of course, you have the big supply, 

 which must be handled differently. 



