88 THE COMMON SENSE OF THE MILK QUESTION 



has examined samples of such milk from one model 

 dairy, as well as many others from the same dairy with 

 a bacterial count of less than 100 per cubic centimeter.^ 

 Dr. C. M. Seltzer, also, has noted similar apparent 

 absolute sterility in two or three samples obtained in 

 the state of New York, out of a dozen samples ex- 

 amined.' At the National Dairy Show, in 1906, milk 

 in which no bacteria could be discovered by the 

 ordinary methods of microscopic observation was 

 obtained." 



Now, milk that is sterile will keep good for a very 

 long time, provided that it is kept under proper 

 hygienic conditions, in vessels that are sterilized, and 

 kept at a low temperature, say 40 degrees Fahrenheit. 

 These are obviously ideal conditions which are not 

 always obtainable in this far from ideal world. At 

 the Paris Exposition, in 1900, one of the most signifi- 

 cant of all the food exhibits was that of American dairy 

 products, particularly of milk and cream. European 

 authorities were astounded: they simply could not 

 understand how it was possible for milk and cream, 

 raw and in the natural state, without preservatives 

 of any kind, to be shipped all the way from New York, 

 New Jersey, or Illinois to France, to be in good condi- 

 tion upon its arrival, and to remain as pure and sweet 

 as milk freshly drawn from the cow for long periods 

 after arriving at the end of the long transatlantic 

 journey.' The French agriculturists were dumb- 



