136 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [P. D. 4. 



of the Massachusetts Health Department called attention to 

 this evil in an address in this city at the time of the National 

 Dairy Convention. I was told that he said "88 towns in 

 Massachusetts have 900 different regulations." Perhaps I 

 haven't got this right, but the facts are bad enough. It would 

 seem that a set of regulations might be devised that would 

 apply to and be adopted by all the larger cities. Perhaps the 

 New England Milk Producers Association has this thing in 

 view along with other matters of standardization. I am not 

 assuming to make any recommendations; only just helping 

 agitate the question to keep it before those who are competent 

 and whose duty it is to work it out. 



A very objectionable milk law, to my mind, is the statute 

 law forbidding the sale as pure milk of milk from which the 

 cream or any part thereof has been removed. This is equally 

 objectionable from the viewpoint of the producer and the con- 

 sumer. It is well known that milk rich in fat as it comes from 

 the cow is in some degree correspondingly rich in solids not fat. 

 A 4^ per cent milk skimmed to 3| per cent w^ould be richer in 

 solids than milk of 3| per cent as it comes from the cow. Yet 

 while it is lawful to sell the poorer 3| per cent milk it is not 

 lawful to sell the richer. It seems to me this law practically 

 says to the producer, " If you want to continue in your business 

 you must keep cows that will give a large flow of thin, watery 

 milk." Although that is the effect of the law it was not the in- 

 tention of its makers. Judge Carroll in reference to this statute 

 said in his decision of May 19, 1915, "The statute was passed 

 for a purpose. It was to protect the public health." No doubt 

 that was the main reason for the law, and I think the law 

 makers might well have had in mind, also, to protect the public 

 from being defrauded in the purchase of an important food, the 

 real value of which is not so apparent as in the case of some 

 other foods. Does the law accomplish these commendable pur- 

 poses? The main questions to be considered are — 



First. — Is 3 1 per cent milk skimmed down from 41 per cent 

 any more a menace to public health than 3| per cent milk as it 

 comes from the cow? 



Second. — Is 3| per cent milk skimmed down from 4| per 

 cent any more a fraud upon the public than 3| per cent milk 



