Vigorous protests from those engaged in adulterating and misbranding foods were made to the Secretary of Agriculture against any further publicity in this direction. As a result of these protests he refused publication of Parts VI and VII of Bulletin 84. Part VI contained a study of the effects on health and digestion of sulphate of copper added to our foods. The conclusions drawn by the Bureau were adverse to its use. The Remsen Board subsequently made a study of sulphate of copper and reached a like decision. The ban on copper was based on the work of the Remson Board and not on that of the Bureau, which preceded it by three years. During this interval the use of this deleterious product was unrestricted.
The seventh part treated of the use of saltpeter, particularly in meats. Owing to the well-known results of the depressing effects of saltpeter on the gonads, and for other reasons, the Bureau refused to approve the use of this coloring agent in cured meats. These two bulletins still repose in the morgue of the Department of Agriculture. They are not, however, deprived of companionship. In the testimony of the Secretary of Agriculture before the committee on expenditures in the Department of Agriculture (the Moss Committee), it is found that the following additional manuscripts prepared by the Bureau of Chemistry were refused publication, namely, Experiments Looking to Substitutes for Sulphur Dioxides in Drying Fruits, by W. D. Bigelow; Corn Sirup as a Synonym for Glucose, offered for publication in 1907; Sanitary Conditions of Canneries, Based on Results of Inspection, by A. W. Bitting, offered for publication in 1908; Reprint of Part IV of Benzoic Acid and Benzoates, asked for in 1909; Medicated Soft Drinks, by L. F. Kebler, offered in 1909; Drug Legislation in the United States, by C. H. Greathouse, offered in 1909; Food Legislation to June 30, 1909, offered in 1910; The Estimation of Glycerine in Meat Preparations, by C. F. Cook, offered in March, 1910; Technical Drug Studies, by L. F. Kebler, offered in 1910; Experiments on the Spoilage of Tomato Ketchup, by A. W. Bitting, offered in 1911; the Influence of Environment on the Sugar Content of Cantaloupes, by M. N. Straugh and C. G. Church, offered in May, 1911; A Bacteriological Study of Eggs in the Shell and of Frozen and Desiccated Eggs, by G. W. Stiles, May, 1911; The Arsenic Content of Shellac, offered June, 1911.
All of these publications are in the morgue. They were objected to by parties using preservatives and coloring matters and articles adulterated with arsenic, and these protests against publication were approved and put in force by the Secretary of Agriculture. In other words, all the principles which animated the Inquisition were used by the Department of Agriculture to prevent any further dissemination of the studies and conclusions of the Bureau in regard to the wholesomeness of our foods. The whole power of the Department of Agriculture was enlisted in the service of adulteration which tended to destroy the health of the American consumer. On the appointment of the Remsen Board further investigations by the Bureau were ordered to be suspended.
Further information regarding the activities of the Poison Squad were presented to the Committee of Interstate and Foreign Commerce during the final hearings on the Food and Drug Legislation. This information has the distinguishing tone of question and answer which adds much to its interest and value. Quotations from those hearings follow:
