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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 1881)
February, i8$i. the West shore. 39 FOOD ADULTERATION. The subject of food adulteration baa of late attraoted great deal ol attention, a fmm time to time development are made showing to what an extent the nefariooi traffio ii carried on. The yeast powder men were probably the flrit of the data to be inveatigated, and thoy did not ooma out with clear akirta by any means. But there are many other Iranchea of manufacture and trade which need to be oloeely watched also. Local attempt! to regulate the ile of food have, on account of limited jurisdiction or other causes, generally proved inadequate for the pur. poaea for which they were designed, and wiie tawr Mtional, if powible-ahould be enacted, whioh will afford adequate protection both to conaumert and honeat manufacturer!. About a year ago a member of the Nstioual Eoird of Trade placed at the disposal of the Exeoutive Council of the Board the aum of $1,000 for a price, or prir.ee, to be given for the beat aot, or acta, acoompsnied by an esiay, de signed to prevent injurious adulteration and regulate the sale of food, without imposing un neoeaaary burdens upon commerce. A oommit tee of experts was appointed, one of whom was a physioian, one a chemist, one a lawyer and one a merchant, this committee having author ity to pass upon the essays, and when thtir labors were oompleted, to give to the President of the Board an aot, to accomplish the purpose described. The competition instituted by virtue of this resolution ended October 1, 1880. The com mittee of experts awarded the lint prize ($500) to O. W. Wigner, K. G. 8., of Iindon, an analytical chemistof high reputation; the second prise ($300) to Vernon M. Davis, of New York, and the third price ($'200) to William H. Newell, M. D,, of Jersey City. They also, in aooordanoe with the resolution, prepared the draft of a national act designed to prevent future deleter ious adulterations. The oommittee who made the award and who prepared the bill, oonsisted of John 8. Billings, M. 1)., Surgoon U. 8. A., Vioe-President of the National Board of Health; Prof. Charles P. Chandler, President of the New York Board of Health; the lion. B.Williamson, Ex-Chanoellor of New Jersey, and A. H. Hardy, Esq., of Boston, In the composition of this oommittee are included the unitarian, the health officer, the chemist, the jurist and th merchant In the treatment of the subject the advantages of their varied experience and special knowledge have been 'obvious. The act or bill referred to baa been drawn up and presented to Congress. The inHuenoe of all oitisens is asked to eeouro the passage of the proposed law, a oopy of which has been transmitted to us, ana wnion we snau puoum next week. This subject is a moat important one for the oommunity. We buy things in peckegee,boxes, jars or bottles, purporting to be certain sub stances, when in reality they are not what is represented. We are apt to sat things injurious to na, unknowingly, and all these danger are incurred simply because aome manufacturer is not satisfied with a fair profit, but wanU to get riop quickly at the expense of hi customers. Whenever we tee a factory where they are making np any article of food, with the forbid ding "no admittance" sign up, we always sua peat the product of that place. But how is one to tell without an examination of each ar tiole, and each sample of it? There ought to he heavy penalties attached to food adulteration. People who steal horses, or money, or anything else of the kind, are considered thieves, and are put in prison for term of yeara. But a man may steal another's health, which oaonot be re placed, by selling good which are deleterious yet be will bold up hi bead in the oommunity and be ooosidsred, when rich, a "smart" man. We hope to see the time come when such people are elaosed with highwaymen and other thieves. Yon can have aome grain of respect for a man who elands ap and takeaa ebanoo when robbing Tom bet for the thief in the dark, the pick pocket, the nan who vitiates th food yon eat, yon oan have none. CHINESE WOMEN'S FEET. An American missionary, Mist Norwood, of Swatow, sum time sinoe described in a New York Tma paragraph how the aise of th feet is reduoed In Chinese women. The binding of the feet is not begun until the child has learned to walk. The bandages are especially manufact ured, and are about two inohe wide and two yards long for the first year, five yards long for subsequent years. The end of the atrip is laid on the Inside of the foot at the Instep, then carried over the toes, under the foot, and around the heel, the toes being thus drawn toward and over the sole, while a bulge is produced on the instep, and a deep indentation in the sole. Successive layers of bandage are used till the strip is all used, and the end is then sewn tightly down. The foot is so squeesed upward that, in walking, only the ball of the groat toe touches the ground. Alter a month the loot la put in hot water to soak some time; then the so often seen on the woman 'a (ace i derived. Th origin of this custom ia involved in mystery to the Westerns. Some say that the strong minded amonj the uUl to iuUitwe iu politic, and that there is a, general liking for visiting, chattering aud goeeip (and Chines women can chatter and gossip), both and all of which inclinations their lords deeired.eud desire, to atop by crippling them." TuNNik Thkihmhi Til Pai.haiiu. Chief Engineer Katta ia getting his machinery on th ground, preparatory to building a double track tunnel through the anlid mass of rook known aa llergcn hill, for the Nsw York, Ontario and Western railroad. Its length will he 4,225 ft., and it will extend from Weohawkcn. on th Hudson river, weatward to the Haokantaok meadows at New Durham. The time within which this work la to be accomplished would have astonished people born bofora the era of modern engineering, as the contract says all must be oomplnte one year from date, Novem ber III, 1SS0.. Th eastern approach out meas ures 1150 fr. ; the tunnel proper, 4,224 ft. I westers COMPIIKSHION Or CHINESE LADIES' FEET. bandage Is carefully unwound, much dead I approach out, 2, "00 ft, outiole oommg of! with It, Frequently, too, one or two ies may even drop off, in which oaae the woman feels alterward reiiaid by having smaller and more delicate feet. Each tune the bandage ia taken off, the foot ia kneaded to mak the jointa more flexible, and ia then bound up again aa quioltiy a poetiuie wiin irean uawiage, which ia drawn up more tightly. During the first vear the vein is so intense that the aulferer oan do nothing, and for about two year the foot eohta ooutinually, and la the seat ol pain whioh ia like the pricking of sharp media With oontinued rigorous binding th foot in two yeara becomes dead and eeaws to ache, and the whole leg, from the knee downward, lie oomea shrunk, ao a to be little more than skin and hone. When onoe formed, the "gulden lily," aa the Chinese lady oa.Ha her delicate little foot, can never recover it original snap. Our illustrations show the foot well bandaged and unbandaged. and are from photographs forwarded by J. W. Bennington, It. N., to the frtrafite Amrrican, and who writsai "It ia an error to suppose, a many do, that it ia only the upoer ten amoog th daughter of China that indulge in the luxury of 'golden tilliae,' a it I extremely oommon among every rises, even to the poorest notably th poor (swing women ooe aeee ia every Chinee eity and town, who oan barely manure to hobble from bona to house seeking work. The pain endured while nder the operation ia ao cover and oonlinnoua that the poor girls never sleep for long periods vithoat the aid of strong narcotic, and then only bat fitfully; and it i from thU oaatant eunerieg that the peculiar sullen or stolid look Th earth cut com es wok, 0,000 yards; solid rock. 44,000 yards, exclusive of 7U.I107 yards on the tunnel proper, Highth of tuunel, W ft. width, 27 ft. The shaft, fiv in num ber, Involve 2,10.1 ft of rook outling; area, 7 1 15. The track will rise 2A inches per 100 ft to point near the meadows, and then fall 40 inches per 100 ft The new railroad will give a third rout through th rocky harrier ol th lower Hudson, of which the Delaware, lika wanna and cetera and the Erie are th first two. PALttrrro pAanimiaT. People of the South era State diaoovered that smooth, strong and pliable parchment can be manufactured from the palmetto of Florida and other Southern State. The parchment oan be waahed, rubbed and handled Just like cloth, and th writing will not beeBaosd. It oan be cheaply manufao turod, and ia likely to oome into general use for ooeveyanoee, land ollloe receipt, eta. As muoh aa 0O of the weight of the palmetto can be utilised ia paper making. EiTiHuiv Riur lluu.DiKd. Shlpbulldlnroo t ic Clyde was unusually active but year. Two hundred and forty -ooe veeeel of ill kinds were launched, of a total, officially, 2XMWO tons, an oioec of 71,000 ton over IHiU. Their market, able vain represents an outlay of about $-'W,. 000,000. Tmi American Ioatitot of Mining Engineer held tt opening session at Philadelphia Tues day evening.