The evening times., 1899-01-19
BROSIUS TALKS TO
THE DELEGATES
The Pennsylvania Congress-
mans Eloquent Address.
Proceedings of the Second Day of
the Pure Food Congress.
Resolutions Adopted Urging Legis-
latures to Take Action to Secure
National Law.

National Law.
The second session OF the Pure Food and
Drug Congress was called to order at 1870
o'clock this morning.
The delegates assembled at the place of
meeting long before the time set for the
convening of the congress- however. and
were engaged in earnest consultation with
each other when President Blackburn call
ed for order.
The president announced at the opening
of the meeting that the chairman of the
committee on credentials had stated that
he would not be able to report at the be-
ginning of the meeting, as the programme
provided, and the order of business would
have TO be changed.
Mr.. Blackburn announced that Senator
Faulkner had been called from the city
by the death of his father-in-law, and
would therefore not be able to deliver an
address.
Representative Brosius OF Pennsylvania
was present, however, and delivered
lengthy address on the advisabi:ity of the
passage of the measure. His address
showed the result Of much thought On the
matter and was delivered in careful
manner. He was frequently interrupt I'd
by applause, which at the conclusion of
the address amounted to almost an oya-
tion. He said in part
When we met here a year ago to take
council of each other on subject of inn
mediate and pressing interest to every
citizen we were on the threshold Of a
war with Spain. Great things have trans
| pired within the year. In some respects
| this republic has grown twenty years in
one. So marvellous have been the events
of the year that great American has de-
clared that in 100 days God set forward
| civilization 100 years. New and stupend-
Gus problems loom before us. The ques-
ticn OF the Philippines came before that
of pure food was out of the way. Now
we must meet both problems. They stand
before us like the riddle of the sphynx, and
death is the penalty for failure to answer
either one. | indulge the nope that in
both we may go forward like men to meet
our responsibilities and prove ourselves
equal TO the tasks before US and worthy
our manifest destiny.
In the congress of last year | heard
some observations which impressed me
profoundly. They were made by distin-
guished master of the National G.anga
from Indiana. He said he came to the
congress TO start an influence that Tou
stitfen the backbone of the weak members
Of Congress when pure food measures
came up to be voted on. He said the far
mers of the United States demand of their
servants, the members of Congress. p-o-
lection from adulterated food; that of tn =
10000, 900 farmers of the United States
1883, SS5 are in favor of pure food legis-
lation; the other fifteen do not know ex-
| actly what they want. In other words
the farmers of this country entertain cor
rect views on the subject but have thus
far failed to make them effective by Civ
ing them social and political power. hen
these sentiments were expressed | thought
there was much in them to commend and
| resolved on the instant, if / ever Lad
an opportunity to address this congress
again, | would direct attention to the re-
lation Of the two things the inertia CT the
public and the inacton of Congress.
The principle which underlies the pure
food legislation we are seeking is that il IS
the duty OF government TO supply as far
as it can a health producing environment
TO promote commercial integrity and per-
sonal honesty and advance the condition of
human well-being. This is a perfectly
simple and lucid proposition which all
understand and if it only took hold of us
like Asiatic grip we would all contribute
something to bring it about We have on
these lines crusades against the sweating
shops demands for shorter hours OF labor
sanitary precautions in our cities oleomar-
gerlne laws, poor laws, and in many States
man family. 1t was the wise remark CT
kingsley that man is the most precious
and useful thing on the earth. and no cost
spent in afe-guarding him from the dan
gers that beset him in society is thrown
away. Indeed Emerson was wholly right
in suggesting that the only politica! econ
omy worth having is that which RS for IFS
. object the care, culture, and comfort cf the
: human family. And he is not only to be
. protected against injury but deceit and
. imposition as we'll
Philosophers tell us that other things
: being equal. the food of q people deter
: mines the increase of their numbers. and
the increase of their numbers the rate of
!. ! their wages, and the latter the distribution
!. | OF wealth, political power, and social in
!. huence; in short civilization Differences
: IN 1000 help TO account for variety in ma
! tional characteristics. There is connec-
| tion more intimate than We suspect he
. | tween the peoples food and their folies
. | their meat and their morals, their stom-
: achs and the state, their digestion and the
!. national destiny. The outcome of the
! | poilcy CT expansion will depend in no in
] considerable degree on how well the Amer
. | ican brain is nourished by pure and whole
. | some food. Voltaire said the fate of a
!. nation had often depended upon the good
: or bad digestion Of prime minister. Mot
I . ley declared that the gout of Charles Y
i changed the destiny of the world Emer-
]. | son said he knew a physician who insisted
!. that "a mans religious creed is likely tr
!. be formed in his hillary duct-if the live,
!. is sound he would be a Unitarian; if dis.
I eased, most likely a Calvanist
! Here, then, is an object worthy OH,
!. | deepest solicitude. There are wrongs tha
|. need resistance, rights that need assist.
|. ance, dangers that need to be warded off
/ in short, cause which finds no difficult,
/. in establishing its title to the considera.
!. | tion of government which is under &
/. constitutional mandate "to provide for tht
|. | common defence and promote the genera
1. | welfare"
]. The advantages of pure food touch u:
!. | more remotely than some other things. fo]
|. adulterated food rarely kills outright, ant
!. it takes the apprehension of murder al.
/ most to stir some people from their iner.
i tia. If you suspect the cook has put poi.
|. son in your coffe, you do not drink it witt
!. satisfaction, if you touch it at ALL Ant
!. in these days, when murder is sen,
I through the mails from San Francisco t.
{ the Eastern seaboard, it is interesting t.
!. every man to know what he is eating ant
|. drinking. If his interest in his own stom.
!. ach does not arouse him fraternal feel
!. ing for others ought to stimulate him tt
{ exertion for the common good But unit
!. | you can make him sensible of his obliga
|. tion to contribute his eXertion to the com.
!. | mon benefit he does not act, and you car
only do that by agitation, by all those
agencies which are calculated to walker
the mind and open its eyes.
Now the question arises, how are VIZ
n to quicken our pace in the direction of the