130 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



There is no doubt of formaldehyde being a poison and to 

 substantiate this statement I quote the words of A. Wynter 

 Blyth, the celebrated English authority on adulteration, as found 

 on page 237 of his book on ''Foods: Their Composition and 

 Analysis." He says: "Formaldehyde is, without a doubt, poison- 

 ous, and the question has to be discussed as to whether it is per- 

 missible to preserve articles of daily food, such as milk, by its 

 addition. The Department Committee on Food Preservatives, 

 etc., 1901, recommend that the addition of formalin to milk be 

 absolutely prohibited." And the United States Dispensatory, 

 which is the American authority, says of formaldehyde : ''The 

 discovery of Trillat in 1888 of the germicidal powers of formal- 

 dehyde has been abundantly confirmed. It probably ranks in 

 power as a little inferior to corrosive sublimate, although it cer- 

 tainly is much stronger than carbolic acid. According to K. 

 Walker, its 1 per cent acqueouss solution will destroy all pathoge- 

 netic spores within an hour. It is further claimed for it that it 

 has the power of destroying the toxins of various diseases. 

 (Schmidt's Jahrb., Bd., cclii.) It has a very powerful action 

 on various forms of organic matter; one part in four thousand 

 completely decolorizes wine, precipitating extractive and coloring 

 matters." And it says further that "upon the higher animals it 

 is one of the most irritating substances known." Also, "Formal- 

 dehyde is much used for the preservation of human bodies; an 

 injection of one per cent solution usually suffices, the body in 

 a dry room rapidly hardening without decomposition." In other 

 words, it is used as an embalming fiuid, and I should like to 

 know if anyone would consent to its use in his own food products 

 or in food intended for their children. 



In addition to the awful stuff mentioned before, I have here 

 other adulterants. One is Powdered Iceline, a preservative in 

 dry form. It is principally, if not all, boric acid and belongs 

 in the category of substances that are injurious to health. Another 

 is B. Heller & Co.'s cream thickener and is used to make heavy 

 cream from thin cream. It is sucrate of linme and gelatine and is 

 a fraud in milk products. Another fraud is Heller Chemical 

 Co.'s "Cream Albumen" in liquid form and the label says it is 



