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parties and often expressed in Courts of Law that because you cannot
prove immediate "danger" to health such as the production of
some definite complaint like enteric fever or diphtheria or of some
form of acute poisoning by ptomaines and the like, your evidence is
valueless and the food in question may be considered not only
harmless but beneficial. But have these people never heard of slow
poisons which attack not only individuals and communities, but
races?
Physical deterioration of which we have heard so much lately
is caused by several factors, one of which is improper food, and this
term includes, in my opinion, not only food unsuitable to the
individual but also food of poor quality compounded of unsound
materials, and surely it is the duty of everyone interested in the
improvement of the race to see that every factor prejudicial to the
health is, as far as possible, eliminated. These are the grounds
on which I have acted in the present instance, but it is verv up-hill
work for the individual Medical Officer of Health unless he is backed
up by an enlightened public opinion and my hope in commenting
at some length on this case is that it may contribute in a small
degree to arouse people to the vital necessity of care in the selection
of their food.
Unsound Bacon.
The following report was made to the Council on January 18th,
1916, and on the same date the Council decided to apply for a
summons:—
"Seizure of Unsound Bacon.
We report that at 4 p.m. on 17th December, 1915, food inspector
Mr. Scott visited Messrs. Armour & Co.'s premises at 10, Weston
Street, and found a barrel of hams, picnics, etc., which he considered
unfit for food. He immediately communicated with the office, and
was shortly joined by Mr. Ashdown and the Medical Officer. They
examined about 20 barrels and found the contents were all quite
unfit for food, and Mr. Scott thereupon seized the whole parcel. The
owners agreed that this was a fair sample and that the rest of the