OUTLINES OF A POLICY OF EEFOEM 289 



a smaller room, the inspectors found a small keg of 

 formaldehyde and a cask of " Lactine," a coloring used 

 in the adulteration of cream and milk. It developed 

 that when the manager had notified the proprietors 

 of the creamery that he was without an ice supply, 

 they had answered him by sending the keg of for- 

 maldehyde with instructions how to use it, which 

 he had done regularly. Skim-milk was regularly 

 colored up with "Lactine" and shipped to the city 

 as pure milk, while the bottles were all washed in 

 water taken from that contaminated well which 

 was practically a cesspool. The inspectors found a 

 large shipment of milk from this creamery upon the 

 platform ready for the New York train, whither 

 they followed it, and, finding it adulterated, seized 

 and destroyed more than sixty cans of the stuff. Of 

 course, the permit of that company was revoked. 



Now, it is doubtless true that this was an excep- 

 tionally bad case. It taught New York the value of 

 country inspection as no amount of arguing could 

 have done. It was a lesson that went home. I do 

 not think that I am violating any confidence when I 

 say that all kinds of influence were used to stop the 

 Health Commissioner from pursuing the radical course 

 thus begun, but to no purpose. Fifteen inspectors 

 dividing their time between 35,000 farms and 700 

 creameries scattered through seven states is, natu- 

 rally, an altogether inadequate staff. Making rather 



