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Parliamentary Publications. 



margarine and margarine cheese as well as of the manufac- 

 tories of these articles is required by the new Act, and 

 during the year under review notifications were received by 

 the Board of the registration of 2,229 separate premises in 

 Great Britain, in the districts of 186 local authorities. Of 

 these nearly 8oo have been visited and the registers duly 

 inspected, and the information thus available has already 

 been found of service in the detection of offences. 



With regard to the Merchandise Marks Act, corre- 

 spondence on the subject of reported offences was conducted 

 in several instances, but, after careful examination, it did 

 not appear that proceedings could with advantage be 

 instituted under the Act. 



A statement is given in the Report of the number of samples 

 taken under the Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act in each 

 year since 1894 for each county or borough in Great Britain. 

 The number of samples of fertilisers taken in 1894 was 317. 

 This number increased to 698 in 1898, but the total receded to 

 619 in 1900. As regards feeding stuffs, the latest totals are 

 the greatest, and the increase has been — with a slight excep- 

 tion in 1899 — continuous, the samples taken numbering 127 

 in 1894 and 355 in 1900. The total number of samples taken 

 in accordance with the regulations of the Board averaged 

 -975 in the past three years, against an annual average of 622 

 in the first three years during which the Act was in 

 operation 



During 1900 the number of counties and boroughs making 

 use of the Act was 58, or five more than in 1899. It is 

 remarked that there are still nine of the 51 English counties 

 in which advantage has not yet been taken of the facilities 

 provided by the Act, while in three of the 12 Welsh 

 counties and eight of the 33 county areas in Scotland no 

 samples have yet been taken. 



The Report concludes with an account of the steps taken 

 for the dissemination of information through the medium of 

 special reports, the "Journal," and leaflets. 



