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MR. ALLAN BARNS‐GRAHAM, of Craigallian, Milngavie, has sent us a copy of a letter, addressed by him to the Secretary of the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society and printed in pamphlet form, which contains a number of points of considerable importance. MR. BARNS‐GRAHAM observes that Bran and “Thirds” play a most important part in the rearing and feeding of cattle, pigs, and poultry, and in the production of milk; that these two products ought to be used to a much greater extent than they are now; that large quantities are annually exported from this country; and that the supplies ought to be jealously guarded. He expresses the hope that the Agricultural Organisation Societies of Great Britain and Ireland will in no way encourage the manufacture of condensed milk—on the ground that it is not in the interest of the public health, nor in the interest of agriculture to encourage the manufacture of any article of food which can be made to keep indefinitely by artificial means. This appears to us to be a somewhat strange position to take up, unless the author's intention is to condemn the practice of keeping food products by means of chemical preservatives—in which case we agree with him. But the proper preservation of many food products by legitimate and harmless methods, not involving the use of chemicals or of other objectionable devices, is surely permissible and valuable to the community. Properly prepared and sterilised condensed milk is a very useful commodity if it is what it purports to be. In this connection we may say, however, that condensed milk containing large quantities of added sugar ought not to be sold as “condensed milk,” but as “condensed sweetened milk,” or “condensed milk and sugar”—the proportion of added sugar being prominently disclosed; while, in our view, the sale of “condensed sweetened; ‘separated,’ or ‘machine‐skimmed’ milk” ought to be prohibited altogether.

When it comes to availability, Web site operators should take a page from Yogi Berra's playbook. When asked whether he would be dining at a famous restaurant, the legendary Yankee catcher said, “Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded.” Likewise, if your Web site is too crowded with volume it can't handle, or suffers downtime for any reason, the “e” portion of your business is quickly closed.

The Bibliography of American Creative Literature was started in August 1938 under the auspices of the Works Projects Administration of the United States. At that time Dr. Luther H. Evans was in charge of the historical projects under the WPA. The University of Pennsylvania agreed to furnish the necessary space and certain of the supplies, and Mr. Edward H. O'Neill, a lecturer in English literature at the university, was placed in charge of the project. He remained in that position until the suspension of the work on 22 April 1942. At that time there had been spent upon this project about $150,000, and a force that varied from forty to sixty workers had been employed.

We examine the relationship that exists among bond ratings, bond yields, and various estimates of a firm's contingent environmental remediation liability using a sample of new bond issues. Our results indicate that the largest external EPA-based estimates of the firm's environmental obligations are significantly associated with a firm's bond rating, providing relevant incremental information beyond that supplied by the environmental accruals presented in the financial statements. Furthermore, while the accrued environmental liability is shown to have a direct association with the bond yield, the external EPA-based estimates provide an indirect relationship with the bond yield through their influence on the bond rating. These results contribute to the extant literature by empirically clarifying the role of various environmental liability estimates in establishing a firm's bond rating and further indicating their connection with the pricing of corporate debt.

An International Exhibition of Hygiene, Arts, Handicrafts, and Manufactures will be held in the Crystal Palace, Madrid, from September to November next, under the patronage of the Spanish Government. The participation of British exhibitors is particularly desired by the promoters, who state that the attendant expenses will be small. His Excellency the Spanish Minister of Commerce will be the Honorary President; the President of the Committee will be his Excellency the Duke of Tamames and Galisteo, Grandee of Spain, Senator, and ex‐Governor of Madrid. The American war on the one hand, and political changes on the other, have had the effect of seriously damaging the credit of Spain, and many exporters, in view of then existing difficulties, refused to trade until affairs became mere settled. To‐day, however, the Spanish Government are making every effort to restore the economical prosperity of their country. Markets have gained strength, commerce has quadrupled, imports have trebled, and exchange is greatly improved. Well‐advised manufacturers sell in quantity and at good prices, the demand being greater than the supply. Again, the immense natural richness of the Iberian Peninsula, which has not yet received the attention of enterprising and powerful capitalists in any proportion to its value, makes Spain one of those countries where industrial progress is the more certain. The decision to hold this exhibition is evidently a wise one, and considerable advantages may accrue to British manufacturers and merchants taking part therein. There appear to be ample guarantees to show that the undertaking may be supported with every confidence. We understand that all detailed particulars with reference to this important exhibition can be obtained from the Spanish representative in London, Mr. A. DONDERIS, Spanish Arts Exhibition, Compton House, 99A, Charing Cross Road, London, W.C.

In October, 1902, the Secretary of the Mineral Water Bottle Exchange and Trade Protection Society addressed a letter to the Clerk of the London County Council stating that aerated and mineral waters are, in many instances, manufactured under insanitary conditions, and suggesting that the Council should take action in the matter. The Public Health Committee of the Council thereupon directed that a number of premises where aerated waters are manufactured should be inspected, and, in February, 1903, Dr. Shirley Murphy, the Medical Officer to the Council, presented a report drawn up by Dr. Hamer, the Assistant Medical Officer, by whom the inspections ordered were carried out. Dr. Hamer came to the conclusion that it was most desirable in the interests of the consumer that the manufacture of aerated waters in London should be regulated and controlled. The quantity of aerated water sold in London is very large, and Dr. Hamer's inspection of numerous premises showed that there are many possible sources of dangerous contamination of the water used during the process of the manufacture. We are in a position to state that Dr. Hamer was thoroughly justified in drawing the conclusions which appear in his report. The enormous growth in popularity during recent years of aerated and mineral waters, while unquestionably fraught with a most important influence for good, has brought a number of firms into existence who manufacture more or less inferior and, in some instances, positively injurious and dangerous waters, and who place their products on the market at “cutting” prices, with the result that the honest and careful manufacturer on the one hand, and the public on the other, are made to suffer. Unfair “competition” of the kind referred to exists, of course, in every trade, and only by the authoritative approval of the good and, by implication, the authoritative condemnation of the bad, can such “competition” be effectively checked. But where the health of the consumer is directly threatened or affected, as it particularly is by the supply of inferior or actually injurious aerated waters, the necessity for adequate regulation and control is immediately obvious. The matter cannot be dealt with under the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts. It is not one involving analysis only but, so far as analysis is concerned, the provisions of the Acts make it impossible to carry out the analytical investigations that would be required. In addition to the official registration of all manufacturers of mineral and aerated waters, a combination of inspection and analysis by an authoritative bedy of some kind, or by a recognised individual authority, is necessary to supply a sufficient guarantee to the public and efficient protection to the manufacturer and vendor of pure and high‐class waters.

It is apparently becoming the fashion among certain types of self‐sufficient persons in this country to endeavour to bring discredit upon the scientific expert, and—whenever the practice can be indulged in with impunity—to snub and to insult him as far as possible. While this course of procedure is particularly to be observed when the expert is called upon to give evidence in a Court of Law, or to explain technical points before some highly inexpert body, it is not only in these circumstances that he is subjected to misrepresentation, discourtesy, and downright insult. Whenever a case occurs which appears to afford pabulum capable of being twisted into shape for the purpose, certain newspapers— generally, we are glad to say, of the lower class—are invariably ready to publish cheap sneers at science and scientific men, frequently accompanied by insulting suggestions. Other journals of a better class do not indulge in abuse and insulting suggestions, but confine themselves to lecturing the expert or experts with all that assurance which is characteristic of blatant ignorance. Accusations of incompetence and of culpable negligence are common in the gutter Press and in some so‐called Courts of Justice. Even suggestions of bad faith and of failure to honourably discharge duties undertaken are sometimes to be met with. It cannot be supposed that the reason for all this is to be found in the conduct of some very few persons who, in the eyes of all right‐thinking people, have brought discredit on themselves by appearing as “ advocate‐witnesses ” to defend the indefensible. At any rate, the conduct of such individuals affords no justification for tarring everybody with the same brush. The hostile, acidly‐cantankerous, and frequently grossly insolent attitude adopted by certain persons and in certain quarters towards those experts whose duties are of a public character and connected with legal or semi‐legal proceedings, is due to a reason which is not far to seek. It is due, in the first place, to the disgraceful ignorance in regard to scientific matters, even of the most elementary kind, which unhappily pervades all classes of the community;' and, secondly, to that form of jealousy peculiar to the small and mean mind which detests and kicks at anything and everything beyond its power of comprehension. When apparently contradictory evidence is given by scientific witnesses—appearing on opposite sides in a case—it is obviously far more easy and satisfactory to shriek about the “ differing of doctors ” than to admit that one's own miserable ignorance prevents one from seeing the points and from ascertaining whether there is any real contradiction or not. It is far more convenient to suggest that the public analyst, for instance, does not know what he is about, has made some absurd mistake, or has been guilty of scandalous negligence, than to admit that one does not understand his certificate owing to one's own defective education or inferior intellectual capacity.

In the two years since the publication of the last volume of this series, the planet has witnessed some devastating environmental events some of which can be attributed to human causes. However, we have also seen the world uniting (except mainly for the United States and Australia) to reduce greenhouse gases and hopefully slowdown global warming. Recognizing that saving the planet from environmental degradation depends on the concerted effort of all countries and entities is a major first step in this rescue effort. Depending on the good graces of countries and companies to voluntarily join this effort however, we believe, is a losing proposition.