Whole pepper is seldom or never adulterated, although much is uncleaned. Old, water-soaked stock is at times found on the market. Several years ago two thousand bags were thrown into the Thames River from a wharf which was on fire, and was later offered for sale at auction. The powdered article, however, is adulterated more than any other condiment used as a table spice. The adulteration is made by almost any cheap, foreign article attainable and in a most ridiculous and not only unlawful but inhuman way. The probable reasons why pepper is selected for this more extensive abuse are found in the fact that adulteration is more easily covered up and in the further fact that, owing to the large amount of pepper used, the gain is much greater. The quality of a ground pepper can be told by an expert from its weight and color, and on examination with a lens of low magnifying power. The particles are not coarsely ground, and it is not difficult to pick out pieces of husk, yellow corn, and rice; if necessary, a more careful investigation under a microscope of higher power will serve for confirmation. Black pepper is much more liable to be adulterated than the white, although it is perfectly easy to dilute the latter with broken rice or cracker dust, or with long pepper. There is a disposition many times on the part of those who can afford it to have the best that can be made, in appearance at least, and it is thought by some that the whiter the color of the pepper the purer the quality. This is a great mistake. The removing of the outer covering of the black in order to make white pepper removes the most pungent part of the fruit. This work is sometimes carried so far that, while the fruit, when ground, is nearly as white as starch, there is little left but starch. It is questioned whether this practice is not as much an adulteration as the skimming of milk, as it takes away the most valuable part of the fruit. Long pepper is also used to adulterate pepper, but the taste and smell of the long pepper cannot be disguised, and its starch is nearly double the size of that of ordinary black pepper. Not only are the pepper shells used to adulterate ground pepper, but also other by-products, such as middlings, wheat, corn, ground olive stones, cocoanut shells, almond shells, mustard hulls, long pepper, Cayenne pepper, sago, and linseed.