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Until a bill is passed as suggested in the report mentioned above,
proceedings will be taken in very few instances, as the present method is most
cumbersome. It is now necessary to prove to the satisfaction of the Magistrate
that the amount discovered to be present in the articles is injurious to health.
If the latter be disputed, it is possible that every case taken may prove a
lengthy and expensive proceeding.
The quantity of butter consumed daily varies from 1 to 2J ounces. The
Boracic acid in the above case where proceeding were taken amounted to the
large percentage of 11. The amount of Boracic acid consumed in 2J ounces
of butter would be a little over 12 grains.
A< cording to Dr. Wylie's report to the United States Board of Agriculture,
experiments on the direct effect of boracic acid when administered in food,
showed that taken in small quantities,—less than 7^ grains per day,—no
noticeable effects are immediately produced. The symptons of the cases where
small doses are given for a lengthened period, or larger doses extending over a
shorter period, produce a feeling of fulness and uneasiness in the stomach. In
some cases these symptons result in nausea, with a very general tendency to
produce a sense of fulness in the head, often manifested as a dull and persistent
headache. In addition to the above, there appear in some instances sharp
and well located pains, which, however, are not persistent. After the withdrawal
of the preservative the unpleasant sensations in the stomach and head
disappear, although the feeling of depression persists for a more lengthened
period.
On the whole, Dr. Wylie's experiments showed that 8 grains per day are
too ii uch for the average man to receive regularly. On the other hand, he can
take ti e same quantity for a limited period of time without much danger of
impairing his health. Boracic acid, therefore, when continuously administered
in small doses for a long period, or when given in large doses for a short
period, creates disturbances of appetite, of digestion, and of health generally.
On this standard the amount of boracic acid in this butter was far above
trie quantity that could be safely taken for a short period, even if no boracic
acid was present in any other article of diet. When it is considered that this
pieservative is present in milk, cream, ham, bacon, sausages, and certain beverages,
the amount liable to be consumed daily becomes alarming.