MUNICIPAL HYGIENE 715 



under the existing defective system cannot be prevented, 

 that the consumer is invited to Pasteurize his milk ; or in 

 other words, to raise its temperature to that point (158° F.) 

 which will not give it a cooked taste, and yet sufficiently 

 high to destroy, at any rate temporarily, most of the common 

 organisms. If he wishes to destroy both common and 

 pathogenic organisms, he should raise it to 212° F. for 

 a few minutes. 



As a matter of fact the day must come when all milk will 

 have to be delivered ' put up,' so that the extra chances of 

 infection resulting from the ' rounds ' of the retail trades- 

 man may be avoided. Jars can now be had made in all 

 sizes from half a pint upwards with a germ proof cover, 

 and the milk delivered without being exposed to infection 

 from the time it leaves the dairy until it reaches the con- 

 sumer. On the next round the jars are collected, washed, 

 steamed, and sterilized, and again ready for issue. 



For the poorer classes it is quite likely Municipalities 

 will have to take over the milk-supply, already a step has 

 been taken in this direction by one or two places, where 

 milk for infants can be obtained which is above suspicion. 



The milk-supply of towns is a purely medical question, 

 though it has received capable handling by the veterinary 

 profession.* In the reference given, Lloyd mentions among 

 other reforms, (1) An increased price must be paid for a 

 better and purer article. (2) He urges municipalities to 

 encourage the milk producer to extend greater cleanliness 

 to everything connected with his trade. (3) Local authorities 

 are begged to apply the powers they already possess, in the 

 shape of the Dairies, Cowsheds, and Milkshops Order. 

 (4) The supply of milk from any cow suffering from illness 



* 'The Milk-Supply of Large Towns': Mr. J. S. Lloyd, P.B.C.V.S., 

 Journal of State Medicine, vol. xii., No. 1, 1904; ' Collection, Distri- 

 bution, and Contamination of Milk': Mr. J. Brittlebank, M.E.C.V.S., 

 Journal Sanitary Institute, vol. xxiv., part iv., 1903 ; ' Some Points 

 on the Hygiene of the Udder, and the Conditions of Milk Production 

 in Eural Districts ': Mr. J. Harvey, F.E.C.V.S., Boyal Institute of 

 Public Health, Exeter Meeting, 1902. 



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