PURE MILK SUPPLY

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2533, 6 August 1915, Page 3

PURE MILK SUPPLY

AN INSANITARY OFFENCE

DOGS & GAME IN MILK VANS

The question of a pure milk supply for the City was under consideration at the meeting of the City Council last night, when the Public Health Committee presented the following report:— "They had waited upon the District Health Officer and the, Director of live Stock and Meat Division with reference to inspection of milk- in the City. The Department of Public Health will bo prepared to recommend the appointment of an inspector to inspect and take samples of milk within the City, subject to the council also providing an inspector for the same purpose. Hie council's inspector will'be an officer of the Health Department, and will be appointed an: inspector under the Sale' of Food and Drugs Act, and will be under the supervision of the District Health Officer as regards inspection and taking samples of milk. For the council he will continue to carry out the duties of inspector of milk carts and dairies as at present, the licenses, fees, and fines in connection with which being retained by the council. Duplicates of reports'supplied to the Health Department will be supplied to the council, and the council will be responsible for the_ salary of their inspector. Your committee recommend that the proposal be agreed to. "Dogs, Came, and Milk." "They had received the following report from the Sanitary Department with reference to conveyance of milk to the City in vans which at the same timo accommodate men and dogs. The matter has ■ been brought, nnder the notice of the Railway Department and Public Health Department:—'lt was reported to me by a milk vendor in the City that dogs,' men, and game were conveyed in milk vans carrying milk to the City by the Sfanawatu train, which arrives at Thorndon at 7.30 p.m: on Sundays. To make certain that his statement was correct I visited Thorndon Station last night. On arrival of the train I approached the milk van. On the door ' being opened five men with guns, leading five dogs, left the van, which contained a large number of five and ten gallon cans filled with milk. I drew the attention of the stationmaster to same and informed him I would report the matter. Our dairy _ by-mw, 'Section 889, sub-Section s,provides that no animal whatever shall be kept or allowed to enter or'.to remain: in any dairy or milkshop. Considering-that all dairies are well lighted and ventilated, I regard it more essential from a health point of view that no passengers, dogs, o.- animals should be carried or kept, in close contact in a compartment • (milk van) used for the storage and transport of milk for human consumption. I would suggest that the .Railway authorities be communicated, with to prevent arecurrence of this insanitary offence.' " More Rigid inspection. Councillor J, Godber, chairman of the committee, said that they were seized with the importance of having a 'far more rigid inspection of the milk supply than that at present .prevailing. They had had a long conference with the Pub-lic-Health Department,; and it had been suggested that the council's inspector should be placed nominally under the control of the Department. If that was done the Department would recommend to -the Government that an additional inspector should be appointed, and there would .bo two men permanently inspecting the-,milk. The 'first part of the report .• was adopted.,- . . 'Councillor Godh'er then-strongly 'criticised the. fact that men, dogs, and, he supposed, rabbits,_ were .brought in from the Manawatu district almost; every Sunday in the milk van. He thought jt quite right that the public should know that they did not get sufficient assistance from the Railway Department.^ Councillor M. P. Luckie said that' if the papers made the matter public it would have a drastic effect with the Railway, Department, and there would ho an immediate cessation of the ground for oomplaint against the Department. The report was adopted. , HAPLESS ARMENIANS DRIVEN TO THE DESERT TO DIE. | By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright i Paris, August 3. | Letters received state that 40,000 Armenians in Cilicia have perished. The entire population,have been stripped of all their possessions and driven into the desert to die. . Twenty Armenian Social Democrats were publicly hanged in Constantinople on a charge of plotting for the indepen- • dence of Armenia.