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Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 140, 20 July 1914, Page 6

A milk supply, as pure as it ought to be, has been, and is still, one of Ihe most baffling.problems of municipal life. Restrictions covering both the supplier and the distributor have been enacted L-y Parliament, but, as we showed in an article in Saturday's issue, it is clear that these restrictions are not being en-forced-in every case. Meanwhile, the consumer is at the mercy of the dairyman, who has neither the means nor the inclination 'to keep his shed free from contaminating influences, while the milkman, with the easy conscience •and the free-working pump is liable to succumb-to the temptation of adulteration. It is one thing, tp aver solemnly that a pure milk-supply is "indispensable and a public necessity from a health joint of view, but it is another to discover how the id£al is to. be attained. As is suggested in a second article today, there is a grave danger to the milk before it leaves the cow." Many cows, which react, to the tubercular test, continue in use, and their tainted milk finds its way to the tea cup or the porridge plate. The Stock Department is. doing what it can to have these infected beasts destroyed, but it cannot hope to discover all cases. How is the I'lilk supply to be guaranteed! The member for C-hristchurch South suggests in a locail Bill the municipalisation of the supply to the city, giving power to the corporation to establish milktesting stations and to create for itself a monopoly of the business. For vari-. cus reasons these ideas do not seem at all practicable. When all the alternatives are eliminated, one process remains for consideration: that of cooperation among the larger suppliers. Such a combination would have a common distributing establishment, milk out of which would be guaranteed as from untainted cows, as properly cooled, and as tlioroiighly purei The smaller men in the tfade could co-operate, too, if their livelihood was threatened., The result would be that the consumer M ould kilow where to obtain the guaranteed product, arid %oul<l not deal with .distributors who could not produce a