The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-10-29

tunity for Inspector Ben Davis to make q
record" in his particular department il
the Septembe figures now on file in the
Board of Health Office amount to any
thing. During that time Davis and his
deputies inspected 30 milk ranches, 1851
cows, and made the following seizures OF
meat offered for sale in the various mar
kets: Sheep 81, calves "a, COWS 5, beef 431
pounds, hogs 5, hams 20 and $3.50 pounds
of halibut and shark. This is not a bad
showing, when it is remembered that four
men are called upon to cover the entire
City and County of San Francisco.
There is one feature, however, connected
with this wholesale seizure of meat which
Mr.. Davis should not delay in remedying,
and that is the arrest OF the dealers guilty
of imposing on the public diseased ar
ticle. He has sworn out warrants for three
or four Chinese, but the main culprits
have been allowed to go with simple
seizure OF the meat, the offending parties
paying the cost of same. Section 26 of
order No. 1901 speaks very plainly on this
point 1t says:
Any article or animal that shall be offered.
or exhibited, for sale IN any market. or else
where, as though it was intended for sale,
shall be deemed offered and exposed for sale,
within the intent and meaning of this order.
In explanation of this failure to arrest
the guilty parties, Inspector Davis saws
that the wholesalers have a pull" in the
police courts that is much stronger than
any complaint which he could bring
against them. There have been arrests in
the past, he says. in which the offenders
have been allowed to pay a nominal fine
OF 80. He gives as another reason, that
the law IS defective, and has been so agreed
upon by those who should be IN a position
to know, and section l of the order re-
terred to certainly fixes punishment for
those who violate the section just quoted.
1t reads as follows:
Any person who shall violate any of the pro-
visions OF this order shall be deemed guilty of a
mlsdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof
shall be punished by fine of not more than
5000 or by imprisonment in the County Jail
for not more than six months, or by both such
line and imprisonment.
In spite of this plain statement of the
ordinance such well-known houses as Uri
d Co., j. Hoffman, l.. ID. Stone, Jefferson
U. James (ex-Superv isor), Western Meat
Company and e. G. Shuler, in whose es-
adjustments diseased meat was seized
during the month of September, were al
lowed to go free on simple payment of
costs. Section q of the same order saws:
ANY person who, in violation of the pre-
cedlng sections OF this order, shall bring within
the City, slaughter or sell or expose for sale
any article or animal therein prohibited from
sale), or which is unfit or unsafe for human
food, shall forfeit the same to the CITY and
the Market Inspector shall seize and forthwith
remove the same at the expense of the owner
IN such manner, under the direction of the
Health Department, as will insure safety and
protection to the public health; provided th at
TINS section does not apply to the body of any
animal that has died during transit to this
City and County, the owner of which desires
TO use the hide remains of said animal for
purposes other than these prohibited herein
and who shall remove the carcass OF said ami
nal within period of two hours from the
time the same was landed in this City and
County.
1t was to remedy this section that the
Board of Health, at the instigation of DIR.
Lovelace. addressed the following commu-
nication to the Board of Supervisors:
September 3, 1895.
To The Honorable Board of iSaperUisors of The
City and County Of San FrGRcisco-DEAR SIRs :
am instructed by A. l.. Lovelace, NJ D.. Health
Oficer, to call your attention to section 27 of
order 1901. general orders of the Board OF
Supervisors, and entitled FORFEITURE and dntv
OF Market Inspector" and request the repeal Of
that portion OF the section beginning with the
words, IRON the time the same was landed in
this City ana County" DR.. Lovelace claims
That this provlso annuls the efficiency of the
order 1nsomuch that the Market Inspectors
are powerless to seize the remains of any
animals that die in transit, and the owners
thereof are free to dispose of said diseased
meat in open market.
Trusting you will make such amendment to
the order as will fully empower the Market