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45
TO MICHAELMAS, 1887.
Analytical Laboratory,
Vestry Hall, Harrow Road, W.,
October 19 th, 1887.
To the Vestry of the Parish of St. Matthew, Bethnal Green.
Chairman and Gentlemen,—During the past quarter 69 samples
of food have been brought to me by your Inspectors for analysis.
These comprised: Milk, 33 samples, Pepper, 17, Mustard, 15, and
Butter, 4. Of these, 21 samples were adulterated; that is, 30 out of
every hundred of the samples brought had been fraudulently tampered
with.
The 33 Milk samples contained 13 that had been either watered
or skimmed, or both watered and skimmed. One sample contained
no less than 45 per cent. of added water; this was brought to the
Inspector by a private purchaser who kept a coffee-house, and who
found his customers very naturally complaining of the poverty of the
Milk supplied to them.
Of the 17 samples of Pepper, 7 were adulterated either by the
addition of Ground Rice or of Ground Olive Stones. The addition of
Rice to Pepper has become of late somewhat more noted ; the great
difference of price between the two articles and the impossibility of
the detection of the mixture by the general public have made such
mixture very prevalent. As condiments, neither Rice nor Olive
Stones have any value whatever. One of the samples of Pepper
contained 40 per cent. of Rice.
Only one of the 15 samples of Mustard was adulterated; this
contained a quarter of its weight of Flour.
Not one of the 4 samples of Butter was adulterated.
In all cases of adulteration, prosecutions were undertaken, and
in all cases but one were successfully concluded. In this case, where
half of the Cream had been abstracted from the sample of Milk, the
Vendor's Solicitor cited a case where the Court of Queen's Bench had
decided that ''Skim Milk" was "Milk." Therefore it is necessary
to ask for "New Milk" to ensure getting a sample containing the
whole of the Cream. Hence, the Magistrate dismissed the case.
A total of £33 5s. 6d. for fines and fees by private purchasers
has been ordered to be paid into the Vestry's account during the
quarter.
Appending a tabulated list of the analyses,
I remain
Your obedient servant,
ALF. W. STOKES,
Public Analyst.