388 MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS 
to the bacterial laboratory, or at least must look to the bacterial laboratory as a 
guide. If bacterial tests are recognized as an indication of the sanitary charac- 
ter of milk, then the bacterial laboratory tests should precede the dairy inspec- 
tion since they will point out to the dairy inspector the location of unsanitary 
milk. In the enforcement of the grading system, therefore, the milk inspection 
service should be reorganized in such a manner that the bacterial laboratory 
makes its tests first, in order to determine the sanitary character of the various 
milks offered for sale on the city market, and the inspection service then takes 
up the task of discovering the location and causes of the defects which the 
laboratory has discovered and of remedying them. The laboratory service and 
inspection service consequently must be centralized under one head and their 
work thoroughly coordinated in order to give the greatest economy and effi- 
ciency. 
It is quite apparent from the above rather lengthy quotation from 
the report of the Commission on Milk Standards, that they regard 
the bacterial count as of much importance. Contrary to this is the 
opinion of Harding (1917) and a few others who maintain that the 
number of bacteria in milk has no relation to the conditions under which 
the milk was produced. In order to back up this stand the following 
argument has been used. ‘‘ The most offensive, and, at the same time, 
a typical form of filth that may get into milk is cow dung. The bac- 
terial plate count resulting under standard methods of milk analysis 
gives rather less than 5,000,000 per gram as the germ count of fresh cow 
dung. <A gram of such material added to a liter (approximately 1 qt.) 
of milk would, accordingly, increase the germ count but 5000 per cubic 
centimeter. Hence, otherwise lo6w-content milk might carry approxi- 
mately 2 gms. of cow dung per quart and still not exceed the ordinary 
limit of 10,000 per cubic centimeter for certified milk. Likewise a quart 
of Grade A milk, which is understood to be clean milk, according to the 
present accepted standards might contain 12 gms. of cow dung per 
quart and still be legal Grade A milk. . . . In establishing bacterial 
count standards as an index of cleanliness, we are lending official sanc- 
tion to conditions which would outrage public decency and are creating 
a false sense of security and of cleanliness.” It is common knowledge 
that fresh cow dung has a very variable bacteria content. Usually 
it is much higher than 5,000,000 per gram and may even approach or 
exceed a billion. Ayers et al. (1918) found an average bacterial content 
of 50,000,000 in 57 samples of fresh cow dung. This is probably 
dependent upon what the cow eats, for with human beings the diet has 
much to do in determining the bacterial flora. Then, again, fresh cow 
dung does not ordinarily gain entrance to milk. It is the dry dung 
