456 THE CONTROL OF THE MILK SUPPLY 



restrictive a character or otherwise objectionable, they may direct 

 its revocation. On account of this power possessed by the Local 

 Government Board it has become the practice for local authorities 

 to send up drafts of their prepared regulations to the Board before 

 finally adopting them. Regulations under Article 13 are not very 

 widely adopted, and where adopted are often not enforced. This 

 is much to be regretted, as a study of them {see Appendix), will at 

 once show their far-reaching value. 



Now whilst the Dairies Order is the chief legislation dealing 

 with the milk supply, there are others, and brief reference must now 

 be made to them. In the first place, in addition to the Public 

 Health Act, 1875,^ there is the Infectious Diseases Prevention Act, 

 1890, Section 4 of which gives the medical officer powers of inspec- 

 tion of dairies, within or without his own district, and of animals 

 therein, if there is evidence that any person is suffering from 

 disease attributable to the milk therefrom. But there are three 

 limiting conditions — namely, {a) that the medical officer must obtain 

 an order from a justice having jurisdiction in the place where the 

 premises are situated ; {b) that he must be accompanied by a veteri- 

 nary surgeon ; and, {c) that he must report to his Authority, before 

 any action whatever can be taken, and even then the action only 

 results in putting the defendant upon his defence.^ 



In the second place, there is the Public Health {London) Act,iSgi,^ 

 which authorises registration with the County Council (now trans- 

 ferred to the Metropolitan Borough Councils *) of all persons carry- 

 ing on the trade of dairyman, and practically re-enacts the registra- 

 tion clauses of the Dairies Order for London. Under the London Act 

 powers are also conferred on the Metropolitan Sanitary authorities 

 for the inspection, examination, and seizure of " any article of food, 

 whether solid or liquid, intended for the food of man, and sold or 

 exposed for sale or deposited in any place for the purpose of sale 

 or of preparation for sale." This of course includes milk.^ There 

 is also a clause in this Act (Section 71) substantially the same as 

 Section 4 of the Infectious Diseases (Prevention) Act ; but the 

 procedure contemplated involves considerable delay in the event 

 of a sudden outbreak of milk-borne disease. Moreover, when milk 



^ See Appendix I, p. 568 ; Public Health Act, 1875, Sees. 116, 117. 



2 See Appendix H, p. 567 ; Infectious Diseases (Prevention) Act, 1890, Sec. 4. 



3 See Appendix C, p. 55 1 ; Public Health (London) Act, 1891, Sees. 28, 47, 71. 



* London Government Act, 1899, Sec. 5. 



* The same powers are conferred on districts outside London by the Public 

 Health Act, 1875 (Sees. 116, 117, 118, 119, 167). .S"^^ also Public Health Acts 

 Amendment Act, 1890, Sec. 28. 



