BORIC ACID WITH MILK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 20 April 1907, Page 4

BORIC ACID WITH MILK.

AUCKLAND PROSECUTIONS. AUCKLAND, Friday. At the Police Court to-day the hearing of the charges against Samuel Wood and Edmund Chisman, dairymen, of mixing boric acid with milk supplied for human consumption was resumed. Bot/.i cases had been adjourned from last Friday to obtain evidence of persons from whom defendants (who both ; denied using the acid) had obtained the milk. Wm. Blewett, from whom Wood obtained his milk, stated that neither boric acid nor any other preservative had been used in connection with his milk. He had had boric acid on his praises where it had been used by a veterinary surgeon, but he denied putting it in the milk. Alexander Turlott, who supplied Chisman, made a similar denial and said no preservative of any kind was ever on his premises. A similar charge was laid against John Bayliss. The evidence in this case was that a certificate of analysis showed that a sample taken from defendant's milk contained boric acid at the rate of 26 grains per gallon. ' Mr Baume, who appeared for the defendant admitted using a preservative compound named "Preservitas" which explained the presence of 3.25 grains' of boric acid per pint in the milk, but this was less than \,ho lowest limit of 4.8 grains per pint found ip any sjrrijlar case in which there had been a conviction, consequently he contended that in ( selling milk with this quantity of boric '■ trtt in it the defendant had not broken the law. Mr Dyer, S.M., said he had to decide whether the presence of boric acid in any quantity was injurious. Mr J. A. Pond, Colonial Analyst, said he considered that boric acid should not be given to children up to five or six years of age in any proportion. He thought that the proportion found in the sample in question would be injurious to anyone. Judgement in all three cases was reserved.