3. It shall be the duty of the inspectors of milk who may be appointed by any city or town to enforce the provisions of this Act.
Penalty for violation.
4. Whoever violates any of the provisions of this Act shall be punished by fine not exceeding one hundred dollars.
5. All Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed.
Approved June 2, 1884.
The method of testing vinegar, used by Dr. B. F. Davenport, late Vinegar Inspector of Boston, is as follows:—
The following detailed practical method of determining whether a sample of “cider vinegar or apple vinegar” conforms to the requirements of the Statute of April 1885, relating thereto, which requires that it should be not only the legitimate and exclusive product of pure apple juice or cider, but also that it should not fall below the quality of possessing an acidity equivalent to the presence of not less than 4½ per cent. by weight of absolute—that is, monohydrated—acetic acid, and should yield upon full evaporation at the temperature of boiling water not less than 2 per cent. by weight of cider vinegar solids, may prove of interest to those dealing in the article. As the limits set by the Statute are in per cents. by weight, the portion of vinegar taken for the tests should, for perfect accuracy, be also taken by weight—that is, the quantities of 6 and of 10 grammes are to be taken for the tests of strength and of residue; but as taking it by measure, if of about the ordinary atmospheric temperature of 60 to 70 degrees F. will make the apparent percentage at most only 1 to 2 per cent. of itself greater than the true—that is, will make a true 5 per cent. vinegar appear to be, say, from 5·05 to 5·10 per cent.—measuring proves in practice to be accurate enough for all common commercial purposes, and therefore the quantities of 6 and of 10 cubic centimetres by measure may be taken in place of as many grammes.
All the measuring apparatus necessary for making the legal tests is one of the measuring tubes called burettes. It is most convenient to have this of a size to contain 25 to 50 c.c.—that is, cubic centimetres—and have these divided into tenths. The best form of burette is the Mohr’s, which is closed by a glass stop-cock. Besides this, only a dropping-tube, called a pipette, graduated to deliver 6 and 10 c.c., will be needed. These tubes are to be obtained of any philosophical or chemical apparatus dealer, being articles generally kept in stock by them for common use, like yard-sticks.
The only two chemicals needed in determining the strength of a vinegar are such as can be obtained of any competent apothecary in any city of the State. They are simply a small vial of a 1 per cent. solution of Phenol-phthalein in diluted alcohol, and a sufficient quantity of a solution of caustic soda, prepared as directed for “Volumetric Solution of Soda” upon page 399 of the last ‘U. S. Pharmacopœia,’ a book which is in the hands of every competent apothecary, as it contains the formulæ according to which he is required by the law of the State to prepare all such medicinal preparations as are mentioned therein.