52 



XHE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



That Glucose Fraud, Again. 



Mr. Henry Jones has sent us the 

 Detroit Free Press of Jan. 14, with the 

 following paragraph marked : 



Washington, Jan. 12.— The Na- 

 tional Academy of Sciences, through 

 President O. C. Marsh, to-day made a 

 report on glucose to tlie Commissioner 

 of Internal Revenue. After stating 

 what starch sugar is, how manufac- 

 tured, and chiefly used, the report 

 says : The starch sugar industry in 

 the United States gives employment 

 to 29 factories, liaving an estimated 

 capital of $5,000,000, consuming 40,- 

 000 bushels of corn per day, and pro- 

 ducing grape sugar and glucose of the 

 annual value of nearly $10,000,000. In 

 Germany in 1881-82 there were 39 fac- 

 tories of this sort, consuming 70,000 

 tons of starch, producing 40,000 tons 

 of starcli sugar. 



A thorough investigation of the 

 whole subject was made by members 

 of the academy, and as a result the 

 following facts appear : That the 

 manufacture of sugar from starch is 

 a long-established industry, scientifi- 

 cally valuable and commercially im- 

 portant ; that the processes it employs 

 at the present time are unobjection- 

 able in character, and leave the pro- 

 duct uncontaminated ; that starch 

 sugar thus made and sent into com- 

 merce, is exceptional in purity and 

 uniformity of composition, and con- 

 tains no injurious substance, and that, 

 though having at best only about two- 

 thirds of the sweetening power of 

 cane sugar, yet starch sugar is in no 

 way inferior to cane sugar in regard 

 to healthfulness, there being no evi- 

 dence before the committee that maize 

 starch sugar, either in its normal con- 

 dition or fermented, has any deleteri- 

 ous effect upon the system, even when 

 taken in large quantities. 



We are well aware that glucose ca« 

 be made without leaving sulphuric 

 acid and other poisons in it. b''t it is 

 done only in the laboratories of chem- 

 ists, where absolutely pure materials 

 are used, and the greatest of care ex- 

 ercised in its manufacture. But when 

 made in quantities in the glucose fac- 

 tories, of materials which would have 

 been rejected by chemists, glucose 

 is just what we find it in the adulter- 

 ated articles of commerce. The glu- 

 cose in common use and the glucose 

 of the laboratory are very far from 

 being identical, in so far as purity is 

 concerned. 



To use the samples made in the lab- 

 oratory, to aid in the sale and usfr of 

 the impure glucose of the factories is 

 but adding another fraud to the list ! 

 When made of pure materials, and 

 with great care, it cannot be profitably 

 used for the purposes of adulteration, 

 and if not so used, it is of no value. 



Analyses of glucose and glucose 

 syrup have been made by Prof. Charles 



R. Fletcher, lecturer of chemistry in 

 Boston Universty and State Assayer 

 of Massachusetts; by Prof. R. C. 

 Kedzie, of the Agricultural College 

 of Michigan, aud more recently by 

 Prof. Geo. A. Mariner and Dr. T. D. 

 AVilliams, of Chicago, as well as by 

 hundreds of other highly competent 

 and credible analysis throughout the 

 country. 



Prof. Fletcher, in a letter to Mr. G. 

 T. Angell, the distinguished humani- 

 tarian and reformer, of Boston, says : 

 " I have recently made three analyses 

 of glucose and two of glucose syrup, 

 and have found quantities of the free 

 sulphuric acid in every case."' 



Prof. Mariner, in a letter to the 

 same gentleman, says : "I have ex- 

 amined several syrups made essen- 

 tially and entirely of glucose, and 

 found in them chlorides of tin,calcium, 

 iron and magnesia, and in quantities 

 which made very poisonous." 



A family by the name of Doty, liv- 

 ing at Hudson, Mich., recently pur-' 

 chased some syrup of a grocer in that 

 village. The members of the family 

 ate freely of the syrup, and were all 

 made very sick by its use. They be- 

 came alarmed and sent a can of the 

 syrup to the Michigan Agricultural 

 College for analysis, supposing it to 

 contain poison. The result of the 

 analysis of this syrup induced Prof. 

 Kedzie, of the University, to examine 

 a number of table syrups purchased 

 promiscuously from the grocery 

 shops, in all of which he found poison. 



Dr. Williams has made a careful 

 analysis for use of a number of sam- 

 ples of glucose syrup and of sugars 

 adulterated with glucose, in every 

 case finding free sulphuric acid. 



The presence of all the impurities 

 found by the chemists whom we have 

 quoted are readily accounted for. If 

 iron pipes are used for conveying the 

 steam for heating the contents of the 

 vat, the sulphuric acid will attack and 

 dissolve some of the iron, and thus 

 sulphate of iron (copperas) will ap- 

 pear. If too little chalk is used free 

 sulphuric acid will remain in the 

 syrup. The chalk being carbonate of 

 lime, its use will explain why lime is 

 sometimes f oimd in the syrup in large 

 quantities. 



The extent to which this spurious 

 sweet — glucose — enters into the prep- 

 aration and manufacture of articles 

 of food, is quite alarming, and de- 

 mands stringent laws against its en- 

 croachments upon the health of the 

 general public. 



Honey and Beeswax Market. 



OFFICB OF AMERICAN BEE JOtTHNAL, [ 



Monday. 10 a. m., Jan. 21, 1884. ( 



The following are the latest quota- 

 tions for honey and beeswax received 

 up to this hour : 



CINCINNATI. 



HONEY— There is no particular change to note 

 in demand or price of extracted honey. Demand 

 seems gradually improving, but the market being 

 well supplied, and almost daily arrivals, keeps pri- 

 ces down. It brings TioiWc. The market ot comb 

 honey is as last reported. Choice In small sections 

 brings 16®20c. from store. 



In my last market report you make me say : " A 

 choice article of comb honey in H lb. sections 

 brings," etc. I wish to have it stated that I have 

 sold a good deal of comb honey in i and 2 lb. sec- 

 tions during this winter, and that I had nota sinsle 

 call fur H lb. sections. No doubt I should have sold 

 them if I had some, but I am certain that they 

 would have brought no better price than 1 lb. sec- 

 tions, nor would they have sold faster. I doubt 

 whether they would have sold as well. I have, 

 therefore, no particular use for H lb. sections of 

 comb honey. I do not object to them, if the honey 

 is choice: this is the best 1 can say of them. On© 

 time this winter we had 600 barrels or more of ex- 

 tracted honey on hand. We have now more than 

 400 barrels on hand yet. Margins and demand 

 have, so far, been very unsatisfactory. Reason: 

 "Slow business among manufacturers." But I 

 have not been lazy, working up uses for honey, and 

 if I do not report a very large demand for extrac- 

 ted honey in the very near future, then I have 

 made a mistake. 



BEESWAX— Scarce; brings 28@32c. on arrival. 

 Chas. p. M0TH. 



NEW YORK. 



HONEY— White clover and basswood in 1 and 2 

 lb. sections, l7<i!,22c. Dark and second quality, 

 14ru,i:)c.: extracted white clover in kegs and bar- 

 rels, 9®>^10c.; dark, 8®9c, 



BEESWAX— Prime yellow,27®29 c. 



H.K. &F.BTHnRBER&CO. 



CHICAGO. 



HONEY— Goes ofT slowly, and prices areloweroD 

 sections that are imperfectly filled. The demand 

 seems to be chiefly for lots that are fancy in ap- 

 pearance, and in every way perfect sales are made 

 of 1 lb. sections at l.^(dt20c. : lH<'i~ lb. sections, 140 

 18c.: dark and mixed in color, very slow, at about 

 12(^13c. E.xtracted honey steady, but limited de- 

 mand: prices range Irom Tt^mc. per lb. 



BEESWAX-Scarce, at 28^350., according to 

 color and cleanliness. 



R. A. B0BNETT, 161 South Water 8t. 



KANSAS CITY, MO. 



HONEY— The extreme cold weather of the past 

 week has put a check on the movements of honey, 

 both in and out, and some slight concessions made 

 in prices. Extra choice, l and 2 lb. sections, 17® 

 IHc; dark and irregular, 15(§il6c. Sales for the week 

 about 2.u<H) lbs: receipts 3,000. Extracted slow; 

 sales about 2,50<;i lbs., at .^i^8Hc: receipts light. 



JER01>)E TWICHELL. 514 Walnut Street. 



SAN FRANCISCO. 



HONEY— Fancy comb scarce, and prices for 

 the same are firm, but offerings of other descrip- 

 tions receive little or no attention. White to extra 

 whit<? comb, 15(.'t20c: dark to good, !H@Uc: extrac- 

 ted, choice to extra white, 6[a7^c; dark and cand- 

 ied, .5@— 



BEESWAX- Wholesale, 27^®30c. 



Stearns & Smith, 423 Front Street. 



ST. LOUIS. 



HONEY — In fair demand. Comb, 13@18o.; 

 strained and extracted, 7{^8c, 

 BEESWAX— Firmer, at 30(8310. 



W. T. ANDERSON i CO.. 104 N. 3d Street. 



CI,KV ELAND. 



HONEY— Honey continues in excellent demand, 

 as reported last; every lot of choice white comb 

 is taken up as fast as it comes at IHc. in quantity 

 for 1 lb. sections, and an occasional sale at 19; in 

 a very few Instances only, 20c. has been reached. 

 Broken lots and second quality is very slow sale. 

 For extracted there is no demand. 



BEEriWAX— Is eagerly inquired for at 23@30c., 

 but none to supply the demand. 



A. C. Kendel. 115 Ontario Street. 



BOSTON. 



HONEY— Our market is rather dull, and supply 

 more than exceeds the demand ; would not advise 

 shipments to this market. 2 lb. comb, 16®18c.; lib. 

 comb, 18^200. ; extracted, 8®10c. 



BEESWAX -.32(»35c. 



Blake & Ripley, 57 Chatham Street. 



