The Milk Scientist
A breakthrough in chemical detection methods brings local scientists together to test the deadly effects of formaldehyde in the food supply.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Seattle—In the Stewart Holmes laboratory Monday afternoon, Prof. Tanzer gave a test to scientific men of his methods of discovering the presence of formaldehyde in any matter, which proved a complete success. Those present were Prof. Palmer of the State Agricultural College; Prof. H. G. Byers of the University of Washington; Prof. Francis C. Newton, first assistant assayer of the United States mint; C. H. Bogardus, city chemist; Prof. Oswald of the Stewart Holmes Drug Company; Coroner Hoye, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney E. C. Kriete and State Dairy Commissioner E. A. McDonald. Heretofore, it has been the contention of scientists that it was impossible to detect the presence of formaldehyde in milk or other liquid after twenty-four hours. Prof. Tanzer has knocked this contention to the winds and at the conclusion of the work, Prof. Byers of the state university stated that he believed Prof. Tanzer has made a valuable scientific discovery of what had heretofore been a mystery. This was that formaldehyde, administered in small doses, instead of disappearing, as has been supposed, is retained in part in the stomach and with a continuation of the doses a sufficient amount would be accumulated to produce death.
“Prof. Tanzer has knocked this contention to the winds.”
This reflects an era of rapid scientific discovery, where state officials and academics scrambled to adapt law and safety regulation to new industrial poisons. The local laboratory setting highlights how critical regional universities and chemists were in establishing modern public health standards.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.