MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1904

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume IV, Issue 1085, 5 September 1904, Page 2

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1904

A But of more than passing interest to the public generally has been introduced by tho Government. It has apparently been reported to tho Hoalth Dopartment that some of tho articlos of food offered for salo aro not entirely free from hnrifil o r poisonous ingrodionts, for the Bill aitiu at dealing with .the adulteration evil, It is called tho Food and Drugs Bill, and provides that tho purchaser of any article of food or any drug may, on payment of a fee to an analyst, have such article analysed, and shall bo entitled to recieivo a certificate stating whether, if the article is adulterated, it is injurious to tho health of tho consumer' Any porson who odds any ingredient or material to any article of food or any drug so as to affect injuriously its quality of potency is liablo for the first offonco to a fino of £SO, and for subsequent offencos to six months' imprisonment, The standard strength, weight, quality or quantity of any article of food or drug may bo prescribed by Order in Council. If any person convicted of an offonco under this Act is afterwards convicted of a liko offenco tho magistrate beforo whom tho second conviction takos plaio may causo the offender's name, placo of abo>, and of. fence, and tho penalty imposed, to bo publishod at tho expense ot tho offender in such newspaper or in such othor uunncr as the magistrate directs, Tho Bill mikes speoial provision in regard to certain articlos, such as Hour, bread, milk, wine, spirits, ton and cocoa, Tho difficulty that appears to present itself is to find out who the roal offender is—tho re tpilcr, tho merchant, or tho mnaufneturor A satnplo of food purchased at a grocer's may bo found after analysis to bo injuria ous, and yet tho grocer may bo innocou of tho adulteration. Ho might sell tho polluted articlo, but in tho absence o' proof that ho is tho offoiider it would bo manifestly unjust to fine him and publish his uamo as tho adultorant, Thoro is reason to suspect that a good many food articles aro "doctorod" by tho manufacturers, somo of tbera Homo and Continental. Tho moasuro will porhaps bo another of tho many Now Zealand Acts that require amendment beforo they aro really effrotive. But that a moasuro of the kind is necessary is shown by a raport recontly furnished by the English health officers. From what they say there would seem to be scarcely an articlo of food that escapes ndultorntion. And the public analyst for tho city of London, according to an English contemporary, has disclosed a disquieting state o' affairs, Of two samples of butter bought in London ono contained 78 per cent of margarino and tho othor 81'9 per tout of foreign fat. Coffoo was found to bo mixed with 00 por cent of chicory, golden syrup with 45 poc cent of starch glucose, urnslard with 80 per cont of wheat Hour coloured with turmeric, and ground cinnamon with eight por cent of extraneous mineral niattor. Nice-looking substances passing as raspborry or entrant jams wero found lo consist largely cf a cheap vegetable pulp and flUfjar, with small seeds to lako tho placo of tho absont pips, Hwootß known as anisoed balls be been mado attractive in colour by th- use of oxide. Popper was also found to be adulterated with ground olive utones, and inquiry showed that these stones had been obtained in a manner anything b: .t coinforliug to the consumer. Men had bew employed to prowl about the larger towns in Italy, and

to pick up tho olivo stonos from tho streot rubbish, and theao stones, without any proliiuinory cloanßing, had boon ground and mixed with pepper, Many samples of milk H'ero inspects, and about 20 per cent, proved to have boon adulterated, usually with 801 DO form of preservative, Tho meat supply was also unsatisfactory, and several health officers urged tho need for regulations prohibiting tho sale, for human food, of the carcases of animals that had been in such a condition through disenso that their dcstuiciion was necessary.

Mr. Sauiuol T. Whilehouso, sccrota y of tho Thames Land Building and Investment Society, will pay his usual periodical visit here on Wcdnosday nox t.

Mr. Robert Farroll, ox-member of tho Auckland City Council, is on allying viiit to Waihi. It is twouty-tivo years ago sinco Mr, Farrcll was last here. At that 'inn 1 , to tho ordor of Brown and Campbell (now the Onmpboll-Ehrcnfried Company) he creeled tho first wooden •building in Waihi, on the sito whsro tho Waihi Hotel now stands. After it was built the firm installed Mr, Thomas Corbott as licensee. At tho Waihi Hospital yesterday the death occurred of tho little son of Mr and Mrs Herbert, of Main-streot. About two months ago tho little fellow was billon on tho cheek just below tho oyo by a dog, The wound fail'od to heal and he was sent to tho hospital, in which institution ho had beon lying for tho past six weeks. Tho child died from an affection of the brain, tho direct result of tho bite. He was just under two years of age. Much sympathy is felt for the sorrowing parents. A farmer at Dromoro (Canterbury), who had no faith in tho efficacy of tho poisoned wheat supplied by the local authority, after keeping his modicum for a month or two, fed it to hi? fowla, with tho result that tho farm was nearly decimated of poultry, Thinking to mako the beat of a bad job, bo gavo the defunct poultry to his pigs, with tho roiult that the porcines joinodtho poultry, That farmer has now more faith in that particular brand of poisoned wheat than formerly,

A special meeting of the Waihi Miners and Workers' Union was hold on Saturday night to discuss the question of. acquiring a sit-o nnil of thoorection of anew hall. Aftor a good deal of discussion it was almost unanimously rosolvcd to acquiro a sito and erect a Miners' Union Hull as proposed, It was dceidod to let tho quostion of federation sland in anoyance till a fntuvo mooting,

Tho Police Court tMs morning was occupied with tho hearing of two cases, one preferred against Thomas Dure for expectorating on the footpath, and tho other of drunkenness. Tbe presiding justices, Messrs Max D, King and J. E. Slevin, in dealing with the first chargo, reforrod to tho dangers of expectorating on public footpaths, and fined tho offender ss, with 7s costs, Sergeant Shoolmn stated that a vast improvement in the state of the footpaths was m icoablo since the by-law had been in force Tho chargo of drunkenness was preforrod against a first oflondor, who was conyicted and d> charged,

In connection with tho dismissal of Dr J. Hardio Neil from the honorary stall of surgeon? of the Auckland Hospital, the following notice of motion has licon given by Mr I MoLeod, ono of tho members of the Hospital Hoard :-(l) That tho resolution requesting Dr. JJ. Hardio Neil to resign his position on tho honorary staff of the Auckland Hospital berescindod. (2) That the resolution dismissing Dr J. Hardio Neil from his poslion on tho honorary staff of tho Auckland Hospital bo rescinded, (3) That a written copy of tho changes preforrod against Dr. J. Hardio Neil by tho senior medical officor of tho Auckland Hospital bo sent to Dr, ■T, Hardio Noil within thrco days. (4) That the charges be considered at a special meeting of the Hospital ]3oard, The motion will bo considered at tho next ordinary meeting, which takes plaeo on tho 12th inst,