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upon these facts I formed the opinion that the seven tins of peas
were unsound and unfit for food, although not in such a state of
decomposition as the previous lot of 216 tins. The seven tins were
then submitted to the Presiding Magistrate at the Clerkenwell
Police Court, E. T. d'Eyncourt, Esq., who, on examining them, condemned
them, and after 24 hours they were destroyed.
Following my invariable practice the condemned peas were kept
at the Town Hall for 24 hours in order to allow the defendants every
opportunity of having them examined by experts on their behalf.
They were informed of this opportunity, but did not avail themselves
of it. The vendor himself admitted that the peas were unsatisfactory,
and stated that he had, as a matter of fact, arranged to change them
before our seizure.
On May 19th the case came before the Court immediately after
the previous case of 216 tins, but on the application of the defendant's
solicitor (Mr. Beck) it was adjourned to June 8th. On that date a
number of tins of peas, alleged to be from the same consignment,
were produced and opened in Court, and did not appear unsound,
and from this it was argued by Mr. Beck that the seven tins which
we seized were also not unsound. It should be stated that the
seven tins we seized had been stored on a shelf in the shop at the
level of, and near, a gas burner for six weeks. An eminent analyst
was called, and gave evidence that he had opened a number of tins
in the same consignment and had found them sound ; but that if
the tins were shaken and then opened it would be found that the liquor
became turbid, and bubbles of gas appeared on the surface. He
farther stated that this consignment was of a special character, and
was a bond-fide " new " attempt to put on the market a good uncoppered
preserved pea. He submitted in substance that we had
mistaken the change set up by shaking with the changes set up by
fermentation. He admitted that unblown tins (such as these were)
might contain bad food, although advanced fermentation and decomposition
would have a tendency to expand the ends of the tins.
Moreover, where tins had been kept in a hot place there would be
a greater tendency to go bad than if stored in a cool place, and that
if the peas were as we described them they were unsound and unfit
for food. He said that coppering peas fixed the albuminoids in the