OUTLINES OF A POLICY OF REFORM 287 



the city, it is tabulated and the source of the milk 

 supply ascertained. If several cases occur among the 

 patrons of any retailer, this is regarded as a sufficient 

 reason to suspect the milk supply, and a careful inves- 

 tigation of the retailer's methods and of his source of 

 supply is made through the coimtry force, going right 

 back to the farms. 



From this account it will be seen that the require- 

 ments of city inspection in any city — for these things 

 are just as necessary in a city of seventy-five thousand 

 inhabitants as in New York — are many and complex. 

 That they might be considerably simplified is unques- 

 tionable. The retailing of "loose" milk, for example, 

 might well be restricted, and certainly ought never 

 to be permitted by pedlers. Further, the sale of 

 milk ought to be prohibited in stores where other 

 than dairy products are sold, except, of course, milk 

 sold in restaurants and the like to be consumed on 

 the premises. The sale of milk in grocery stores is 

 an almost unmitigated evil. It is conceivable, then, 

 that the number of milk retailers could be greatly 

 reduced. There is no good reason why New York 

 should have from twelve to thirteen thousand places 

 where milk is sold. True, there would be some 

 objection to any attempt in the direction of lessening 

 the number, on the ground that it crushed out small 

 dealers and tended to the centralization of the trade. 

 But that is the law of progress, in distribution as well 



