116 THE COMMON SENSE OF THE MILK QUESTION 



The British National Health Society, which has 

 among its membership many of the leading physicians 

 of Great Britain, at its meeting held at University 

 College, London, in December, 1906, mider the chair- 

 manship of Sir Frederick Treves, had presented to 

 it the report of some investigations made into the 

 state of the milk supply in some of the chief cities of 

 the world. The report showed that the best quality 

 London milk, used by those who can afford the best 

 that is obtainable in the general market, averaged 

 3,000,000 bacteria per cubic centimeter; that in 

 Munich, milk which was tested at the farm soon after 

 milking and found to contain an average of 200,000 

 bacteria per cubic centimeter had, when it reached 

 the retail stores, about 6,000,000 ; that in Amsterdam 

 the tests showed 2,500,000 soon after milking and 

 as many as 10,000,000 when tested, ten hours later, 

 in the retail stores. In Warsaw, milk which at the 

 farms showed only from 10,000 to 20,000 bacteria per 

 cubic centimeter had 4,000,000 per cubic centimeter 

 when purchased in the shops. In New York City, 

 milk was purchased at one place, a grocery store on 

 Allen Street, on thirteen successive days, and showed 

 the awful average of 133,233,000 — one hundred 

 and thirty-three millions, two hundred and thirty-three 

 thousand — bacteria per cubic centimeter ! '' And 

 all these filthy mixtures were fed to infants, not- 

 withstanding the opinion of one of the foremost 



