shift the blame upon the manufacturer, and thus the truth came out.

A gun suddenly fired into a rookery could not cause a greater commotion than this publication of the names of dishonest tradesmen; nor does the daylight, when you lift a stone, startle ugly and loathsome things more quickly than the pencil of light, streaming through a quarter-inch lens, surprised in their naked ugliness the thousand and one illegal substances which enter more or less into every description of food that it will pay to adulterate. Nay, to such a pitch of refinement has the art of falsification of alimentary substances reached, that the very articles used to adulterate are adulterated; and while one tradesman is picking the pockets of his customers, a still more cunning rogue is, unknown to himself, deep in his own!

A STORY is told of an European who, wishing to convince a Brahmin of the folly of The manner in which food is adulterated is his faith in interdicting, as an article of food, not only one of degree but of kind. The anything that once possessed life, showed him most simple of all sophistications, and that by the aid of the microscope, that the very which is most harmless, is the mixture of inwater which he drank was full of living things. ferior qualities of the same substance. InThe Indian, thus suddenly introduced to an deed, if the price charged were according to unseen world, dashed the instrument to the quality, it would be no fraud at all, but this ground, and reproached his teacher for hav-adjustment rarely takes place. Secondly, the ing so wantonly destroyed the guiding princi- mixture of cheaper articles of another kind; ple of his life. We too have at home a Hin- Thirdly, the surreptitious introduction of madoo, in the shape of the believing British pub- terials which, taken in large quantities, are lic, to whose eye Dr. Hassall nicely adjusts prejudicial to health; and Fourthly, the adthe focus of his microscope, and bids him be- mixture of the most deadly poisons in order hold what unseen villanies are daily perpe- to improve the appearance of the article trated upon his purse and person. "doctored."

The world at large has almost forgotten The microscope alone is capable of detectAccum's celebrated work, "Death in the Pot;" ing at one operation the nature and extent of a new generation has indeed sprung up since it the more harmless but general of these frauds. was written, and fraudulent tradesmen and When once the investigator, by the aid of manufacturers have gone on in silence, and, that instrument, has become familiar with the up to this time, in security, falsifying the food configurations of different kinds of the same and picking the pockets of the people. Start- chemically composed substances, he is armed ling indeed as were the revelations in that with far greater detective power than chemiremarkable book, yet it had little effect in re-cal agents could provide him with. It is beyond forming the abuses it exposed. General de- the limit of the test-tube to show the mind nunciations of grocers did not touch individ- the various forms of animal and vegetable life uals of the craft, and they were consequently which exist in impure water; delicate as are not driven to improve the quality of their its powers it could not indicate the presence wares. The "Lancet" Commission went to of the sugar insect, or distinguish with unerwork in a different manner. In Turkey, ring nicety an admixture of the common Cirwhen of old they caught a baker giving false cuma arrowroot with the finer Maranta. weight or adulterating the staff of life, they Chemistry is quite capable of telling the comnailed his ear to the doorpost," pour encour-ponent parts of any article: what are the defiager les autres." Dr. Hassall, like a modern nite forms and natures of the various ingrediAl Rachid, perambulated the town himself, or ents which enter into a mixture it cannot so sent his trustworthy agents to purchase arti- easily answer. This the microscope can at cles, upon all of which the inexorable micros- once effect, and in its present application concope was set to work, and every fraudulent sists Dr. Hassall's advantage over all previous sample, after due notice given, subjected its investigators in the same field. The precivendor to be pinned for ever to the terrible sion with which he is enabled to state the repages of the commissioner's report. In this sult of his labors leaves no appeal; he shows manner direct responsibility was obtained. his reader the intimate structures of a coffeeIf the falsification denounced was not the grain and of oak or mahogany sawdust; and work of the retailer, he was glad enough to then a specimen of the two combined, sold un

der the title of genuine Mocha. Many manu- strength of that tradition it was vended for pepfacturers and retailers, who have been detected per by men who thought they were honest. But falsifying the food of the public, have threaten-as Samuel went on in life his ideas on trade ed actions, but they all flinched from the test of this unerring instrument.

morality grew clearer; this P. D. began to give him much discomfort. He thought upon it till The system of adulteration is so wide-spread the thing was wrong; arrived at this conclusion, he was satisfied that, after all that could be said, and embraces so many of the items of the he felt that no blessing could light upon the place daily meal, that we scarcely know where to while it was there. He instantly decreed that P. begin-what corner of the veil first to lift. D. should perish. It was night, but back he went Let us hold up the cruet-frame, for example, to the shop, took the hypocritical cask, carried it and analyse its contents. There is mustard, out to the quarry, then staved it, and scattered pepper (black and cayenne), vinegar, anchovy P. D. among the clods, and slag, and stones. and Harvey sauce-so thinks the unsuspecting reader-let us show him what else beside. Would we could say that the reduction of, To begin with mustard. "Best Durham," or the tax upon pepper had stimulated the hon"Superfine Durham," no doubt it was pur-esty of other grocers to act a similar part to chased for, but we will summarily dismiss this that of Mr. Budgett, but P. D. flourishes as substance by stating that it is impossible to flagrantly as ever; and if every possessor of procure it pure at all; out of forty-two samples the article in London were to stave his casks. bought by Dr. Hassall at the best as well as in the roadway, as conscientiously as did the inferior shops, all were more or less adulterat-" Successful Merchant," there would be hard ed with wheaten flour for bulk, and with tur- work for the scavengers. In the days of Acmeric for color. Vinegar also suffers a dou- cum it was usual to manufacture pepper-corns ble adulteration; it is first watered, and then out of oiled linseed-cake, clay, and cayenne pungency is given to it by the addition of pepper, formed into a mass, and then granusulphuric acid. A small quantity of this acid lated: these fraudulent corns were mixed with is allowed by law; and this is frequently tre- the real, to the extent of 17 per cent. This bled by the victuallers. The pepper-caster is form of imposition, like that of wooden nutanother stronghold of fraud-fraud so long megs among our American friends, has, we and openly practised, that we question if the are happy to say, long been abandoned. The great mass of the perpetrators even think adulterations we have mentioned are simply they are doing wrong. Among the milder dirty and fraudulent, but in the cayenne-cruet forms of sophistication to which this article is we find, in addition, a deadly poison. Out of subjected are to be found such ingredients as twenty-eight samples submitted to examinawheaten flour, ground rice, ground mustard- tion, no less than twenty-four were adulteratseeds, and linseed-meal. The grocer main-ed with white mustardseed, brickdust, salt, tains a certain reserve as to the generality of ground rice, and deal sawdust, by way of givthe articles he employs in vitiating his wares, but ing bulk; but as all of these tend to lighten pepper he seems to think is given up to him by the color, it is necessary to heighten it to the the public to "cook" in any manner he thinks required pitch. And what is employed to do fit. This he almost invariably does by the ad- this? Hear and tremble, old Indians, and dition of what is known in the trade as P. D., lovers of high seasoned food-with RED LEAD. or pepper-dust, alias the sweepings from the Out of twenty-eight samples, red lead, and pepper-warehouses. But there is a lower often in poisonous quantities, was present in depth still; P. D. is too Genuine a commodi- thirteen! Who knows how many "yellow ty for some markets, and it is accordingly admirals at Bath have fallen victims to their mixed with D. P. D., or dirt of pepper dust. cayenne-cruets? Nor can it be said that the A little book, published not long since, en-small quantity taken at a time could do no pertitled "The Successful Merchant," which manent mischief, for lead belongs to the class gives the minute trade history of a gentleman of poisons which are cumulative in their ef very much respected in Bristol, Samuel Bud- fects. gett, Esq., affords us a passage bearing upon this P. D. which is worthy of notice :

He who loves cayenne, as a rule is fond of curry-powder, and here also the poisonous oxide is to be found in large quantities. Some In Mr. Budgett's early days, says his biogra- years ago a certain amiable duke recommendpher, pepper was under a heavy tax, and in the ed the laboring population, during a season of trade universal tradition said that out of the trade famine, to take a pinch of this condiment everybody expected pepper to be mixed. In the shop stood a cask, labelled P. D., containing warm and comforting to the stomach." If every morning before going to work, as something very like pepper-dust, wherewith it was usual to mix the pepper before sending it forth they had followed his advice, thirteen out of to serve the public. The trade tradition had ob- every twenty-eight persons would have imbibtained for the apocryphal P. D. a place amongst ed a slow poison. Those who are in the habit the standard articles of the shop, and on the of using curry, generally take it in consider

able quantities, and thus the villanous falsifi- | sent to the London market. * * * Cattle, cation plays a more deadly part than even in sheep, etc., are insured against all kinds of discayenne pepper. Imagine a man for years eases, and one of the conditions is, that the dispertinaciously painting his stomach with red eased animal, when dead, becomes the property lead! We do not know whether medical sta- of the insurance company, the party insuring retistics prove that paralysis prevails much ceiving two-thirds of the value of the animal and one-third of the salvage; or, in other words, among Nabobs," but of this we may be sure, one-third of the amount the beast is sold for that there could be no more fruitful source of when dead. it than the two favorite stimulants we have named.

plied—

Yes, I do; until lately they were regularly consigned to a meat-salesman in Newgate Market of the name of Mathews. ** *The larger quantities are sold to people who manufacture it into soup, meat-pies, sausages, etc.

Upon being asked, "Do you believe it is The great staple articles of food are not still the habit of this company to send up subject to adulteration in the same proportion the diseased animals to London ?" he reas many other articles of minor demand. We need scarcely say that meat is exempt so long as it remains in the condition of joints, but immediately it is prepared in any shape in which its original fibre and form can be hidden, the spirit of craft begins to work. The public have always had certain prejudices against sausages and polonies for example, and, if we We have no wish to destroy the generally are to believe a witness examined on oath be- robust appetite of the persons who visit such fore the Smithfield Market Commissioners in shops by any gratuitous disclosure, but we 1850, not without reason. It is a very old question whether the more hungry crossingjoke that there are no live donkeys to be sweeper would look any more with a longing found within twenty miles of Epping; but if eye upon the huge German sausages, rich and all the asinine tribe in England were to fall inviting as they appear, if, like Mr. Harper, victims to the chopping machine, we question he knew the too probable antecedents of their if they could supply the à-la-mode, polony, contents. The only other preparations of and sausage establishments. Mr. J. Harper, flesh open to adulteration are preserved meats. for instance, being under examination, upon Some years ago "the Goldner canister busibeing asked what became of the diseased meatness so excited the public against this inbrought into London, replied:valuable method of storing perishing articles of food, that a prejudice has existed against it ever since-and a more senseless prejudice could not be. Goldner's process, since adopted by Messrs. Cooper and Aves, is simple and beautiful. The provisions, being placed in tin canisters having their covers soldered down, are plunged up to their necks in a bath of chloride of calcium (a preparation which imbibes a great heat without boiling), and their contents are speedily cooked; at the same time, all the air in the meat, and some of the water, are expelled in the form of steam, which issues from a pin-hole in the lid. The instant the cook ascertains the process to be complete, he drops a plug of solder upon the hole, and the mass is thus hermetically sealed. Exclusion of air, and coagulation of the albumen, are the two conditions, which enable

It is purchased by the soup-shops, sausagemakers, the à-la-mode beef and meat-pie shops, etc. There is one soup-shop, I believe, doing five nundred pounds per week in diseased meat; this firm has a large foreign trade (thank goodness!) The trade in diseased meat is very alarming, as anything in the shape of flesh can be sold at about one penny per pound, or eight pence per stone * * * *I am certain that if one hundred carcases of cows were lying dead in the neighborhood of London, I could get them all sold within twenty-four hours; it don't matter what they died of.

It must not be imagined that the à-la-mode beef interest is supplied with this carrion by needy men, whose necessities may in some degree palliate their evil dealings. In proof of this we quote further from Mr. Harper's evi-us to hand the most delicate flavored meats dence. In answer to the question, "Is there any slaughtering of bad meat in the country, for the supply of the London market?" he

says

The London market is very extensively supplied with diseased meat from the country. There are three insurance-offices in London in which graziers can insure their beasts from disease: it was the practice of one of these offices to send the unsound animals dying from disease to their own slaughter-houses, situate a hundred and sixty miles from London, to be dressed and

down to remote generations, for as long, in fact, as a stout painted tin canister can maintain itself intact against the oxidating effect of the atmosphere. We have ourselves partaken lately of a duck that was winged, and of milk that came from the cow as long as eight years ago. Fruit which had been gathered whilst the free-trade struggle was still going on, we found as delicate in flavor as though it had just been plucked from the branch. Out of the many cases of all kinds of provisions opened and examined by Dr. Hassall, scarcely any

have been found to be bad. At a time when from it, in addition to improving the color of

the graves of so many of our soldiers in the his wares, is, that it absorbs a large quantity Crimea may be justly inscribed, "Died of salt of water, which he sells at the present time at pork," we cannot forbear to call attention to a the rate of 2d. a pound. Out of 28 loaves of neglected means of feeding our troops with bread bought in every quarter of the metrogood and nutritious food, instead of with the polis, Dr. Hassall did not find one free from tough fibre called meat, from which half the the adulteration of alum, and in some of the blood-making qualities have been extracted by samples he found considerable quantities. As the process of boiling, whilst the remaining a general rule, the lower the neighborhood, half is rendered indigestible by the action of the cheaper the bread, and the greater the salt, and poisonous by the extraction of one quantity of this "hards" or "stuff" introof its most important constituents. It would duced. We must not, however, lay all the seem as if we were living in the days of An- blame upon the baker. This was satisfactorily son, who lost 626 men of scurvy, out of a crew shown by the Sanitary Commissioners, when of 961, before he could reach the island of dealing with the bread sold by the League Juan Fernandez, or of the still later cruise of Bread Company, whose advertisement to the Sir C. Hardy, who sent 3500 to hospital with following effect is constantly to be seen in the this fatal disease, after a six weeks' sail with "Times." the Channel fleet. It may be urged that the sailors have not sickened on salt pork; but The object for which the above Company was while they have the necessary amount of pot- established, and is now in operation, is to ensure ass, which the stomach requires to make blood, to the public bread of a pure and nutritious charin the lime-juice served out to them, our acter. Experience daily proves how much our troops were without this indispensable accom- health is dependent upon the quality and purity paniment, and consequently died. In the pre- that an article of such universal consumption as of our food, consequently how important it is served meats, which are made up with pota- bread should be free from adulteration. That toes and other vegetables, the needful potass various discases are caused by the use of alum exists, and such food may be forwarded to the and other deleterious ingredients in the manuCrimea as cheaply as the pernicious salt junk which is patronized by the Government.

facture of bread, the testimony of many eminent men will fully corroborate. Pure unadulterated bread, full weight, best quality, and the lowest possible price.

Bread, the great blood-producer, claims particular attention. It often surprises persons who walk about the metropolis to find that prices vary according to the locality:-thus Upon several samples of this pure bread, the loaf that costs in the Borough or the New purchased of various agents of the Company, Cut 7d. a quartern, is 10d. at the West End. being tested, they were found to be contamiCan plate-glass windows and rent cause all nated with alum! Here was a discovery. this difference? Certainly not. We are The Company protested that the analyses glad, however, to find that many of the adul- were worthless; and all their workmen made terations mentioned by our older writers have a solemn declaration that they had never used vanished with free trade. Prince and Accum any alum whilst in their employ. The agents mention plaster of Paris, bone-dust, the meal of the Company also declared that they never of other cereal grains, white clay, alum, sul- sold any but their bread. The analyst looked phate of copper, potatoes, etc. All of these again through his microscope, and again resophistications have disappeared with the ex-iterated his charge, that alum their bread conception of potatoes, which are occasionally em- tained. It was then agreed to test the flour ployed when the difference between their supplied to the Company, and three samples value and that of flour makes it worth while were proved to contain the obnoxious matefor the baker or miller to introduce them. rial. Thus we find that the miller still, in When we see a loaf marked under the market- some instances, maintains his doubtful reputaprice, we may rest assured that it is made of tion, and is at the bottom of this roguery. flour ground from inferior and damaged wheat. Our succeeding remarks will fall, we fear, In order to bring this up to the required color, like a bomb upon many a tea-table, and stagand to destroy the sour taste which often be- ger teetotalism in its stronghold. A drunklongs to it, bakers are in the habit of intro- ard's stomach is sometimes exhibited at totalducing a mixture called in the trade "hards" abstinence lectures, in every stage of congesand "stuff," which is nothing more than alum tion and inflammation, painted up to match and salt, kept prepared in large quantities by the fervid eloquence of the lecturer. If tea the druggists. The quantity of alum neces- is our only refuge from the frightful maladies sary to render bread white is certainly not entailed upon us by fermented liquors, we great-Mitchell found that it ranged from 116 fear the British public is in a perplexing digrains to 34 grains in the four pound loaf-lemma. Ladies, there is death in the teapot! but the great advantage the baker derives Green-tea drinkers, beware! There has al

dyed teas themselves, but justly remarked, that, as foreigners seemed to prefer having a mixture of Prussian blue and gypsum with their tea to make it look uniform and pretty, and as these ingredients were cheap enough, the Chinese had no objection to supply them, especially as such teas always fetched a higher price.

ways been a vague idea afloat in the public quite blue. I could not help thinking if any mind about hot copper plates-a suspicion green-tea drinkers had been present during the that gunpowder and hyson do not come by operation, their taste would have been corrected their color honestly. The old Duchess of and I believe improved. One day an English gentleman in Shanghae, Marlborough used to boast that she came into being in conversation with some Chinese from the world before "nerves were in fashion." the green-tea country, asked them what reason We feel half inclined to believe this joke had they had for dyeing the tea, and whether it would a great truth in it; for since the introduc- not be better without undergoing this process. tion of tea, nervous complaints of all kinds They acknowledged that tea was much better have greatly increased; and we need not look when prepared without having any such ingrefar to find one at least of the causes in the dients mixed with it, and that they never drank teapot. There is no such a thing as pure green tea to be met with in England. It is adulterated in China; and we have lately learnt to adulterate it at home almost as well as the cunning Asiatic. The pure green tea made from the most delicate green leaves grown upon manured soil, such as the Chinese use themselves, is, it is true, wholly untainted; and we are informed that its beautiful bluish bloom, like that upon a grape, is given by the third process of roasting which it undergoes. The enormous demand for a moderately-priced green tea which has arisen both in England and China since the opening of the trade has led the Hong merchants to imitate this peculiar color; and this they do so successfully as to deceive the ordinary judges of the article. Black tea is openly colored in the neighborhood of Canton in the most wholesale manner.

Mr. Robert Fortune, in his very interesting work, "The Tea Districts of China and India," gives us a good description of the manner in which this coloring process is performed, as witnessed by himself:

I took some trouble to ascertain precisely the quantity of coloring matter used in the process of dyeing green teas, not certainly with the view of assisting others, either at home or abroad, in the art of coloring, but simply to show green-tea drinkers in England, and more particularly in the United States of America, what quantity of Prussian-blue and gypsum they imbibe in the course of one year To 144 lbs. were applied 8 mace 23 candareens of coloring matter, or rather more than an ounce. To every hundred pounds of colored green tea consumed in England or America, the consumer actually drinks more than half a pound of Prussian-blue and gypsum. And yet, tell the drinkers of this colored tea that the Chinese eat cats and dogs, and they will hold up their hands in amazement and pity the poor Celestials.

by any one who places a pinch upon a fine sieve, and pours upon it a gentle stream of water, when the tinging of the liquid will show at once the extent of the adulteration, and the folly of drinking painted tea. Assam tea, though not so inviting in color, is free from adulteration. A word to the wise is enough.

If the Chinese use it in these quantities to tinge the genuine leaf, how much more must the English employ in making up afresh exHaving procured a portion of Prussian-blue, hausted leaves! That every spoonful of hyhe threw it into a porcelain bowl, not unlike a son or gunpowder contains a considerable chemist's mortar, and crushed it into a very fine quantity of this deleterious dye will be seen powder. At the same time a quantity of gyp sum was produced and burned in the charcoal fires which were then roasting the teas. The object of this was to soften it, in order that it might be readily pounded into a very fine powder, in the same manner as the Prussian-blue had been. The gypsum, having been taken out of the fire after a certain time had elapsed, readily crumbled down, and was reduced to powder in the mortar. Of fifty samples of green tea analyzed by These two substances, having been thus pre- Dr. Hassall, all were adulterated. There is pared, were then mixed together in the propor- one particular kind which is almost entirely a tion of four parts of gypsum to three parts of manufactured article-gunpowder, both black Prussian-blue, and formed a light blue powder, and green-the former being called scented caper. Both have a large admixture of what is termed "lye tea," or a compound of sand, dirt, tea-dust, and broken-down portions of other leaves worked together with gum into small nodules.

which was then ready for use.

This coloring matter was applied to the teas during the process of roasting. About five minutes before the tea was removed from the pans -the time being regulated by the burning of a joss-stick-the superintendent took a small porcelain spoon, and with it he scattered a portion of the coloring matter over the leaves in each pan. The workmen then turned the leaves round rapidly with both hands, in order that the color might be equally diffused. During this part of the operation the hands of the workmen were

This detestable compound, which, according to Mr. Warrington,* who has analyzed it, contains forty-five per cent.

*In an article upon the teas of commerce, which appeared in the Quarterly Journal of the Chemical Society for July, 1851.