Government Food Tests

Scientists to Study Effect of Preservatives on Human Subjects.
     When Dr. W. H. Willey, chief of the bureau of animal industry, gets back to the United States from Europe, whither he sailed the other day, the United States government will establish a free table for people who are willing to have their stomachs experimented with. 
     The purpose it to conduct experiments to determine whether the foreign substances added to food products are detrimental to the health of man. While Dr. Wiley is in Europe the civil service commission will hold examinations and prepare an eligible list of expert physiological chemists to aid him in the work. Congress appropriated $10,000 for it. After that healthy young men who are willing to eat free food that may or may not have deleterious ingredients will be in demand.
     If Dr. Wiley can get permission to experiment on college students, they will be his preference. He wants to get some college to let him set up a "training table." Each student who eats at this table is to give his word of honor not to eat anything except what he gets at the government restaurant. The first ten days or so will then be devoted to feeding the subjects a good healthful quantity of the ordinary foods with no object in view but to get them in a perfectly normal condition.
     Then the effect of a certain chemical- borax, for instance- will be tried. After the effect of this has been noted, another preservative chemical in common use will be taken up; then a coloring substance, etc., until the gamut of color and preservative has been run and the bureau has obtained data enough on which to base correct conclusions. 
     A system similar to this is to be tried in the United States army, when new rations will be tested.