212 TlMEHRl. 
The most commonly practised attempt at adulteration is 
by adding water to the fresh balata milk. When the 
fraud is so palpable that the purchaser detects it at once, 
the collector will perhaps admit it, and say that he had 
intended to mention it, that it was unavoidable, rain hav- 
ing fallen (the usual excuse) while he was collecting, 
trusting after the admission is made that he may still be 
the gainer by a smaller quantity being demanded by the 
purchaser to be allowed as a set-off for its presence than 
the water actually put in. As much as from twenty-five 
to fifty per cent, of water has been known to be added 
to the milk. Its presence cannot be detected by an 
hydrometer, as the density of the milk is rather greater 
than that of water. The experienced buyer is, however, 
able to tell when much water is present by dipping his 
finger, quite dry, into the milk, when, if it has been 
diluted, it will run off leaving the surface of the finger 
wet but with not much milk adhering to it. If no water 
is present, a thin coating of milk, like white paint, re- 
mains. They say, however, that if the milk has been 
kept for a few days the test is not so reliable. When 
much diluted with water, lime is sometimes added to re- 
store the consistency. Balata made from such milk is of 
no value. It is brittle and can be broken up between 
the hands when dry. With the fraud of selling water as 
milk, the rascally collector also imposes on the buyer the 
longer period the liquid will take to dry while the water 
is slowly being dissipated from the trays under evapor- 
ation. The dry balata, too, in years past used to be 
adulterated in various ways. Here the knavish collector 
found a wider scope for his ingenuity. It is now guard- 
ed against, and on the whole effectually, by the system 
