The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-06-15
EXPLAINED BY A GERMAN
THE MEAT INSPECTION Law JUST
ADOPTED By THE REICHsTAG.
It's Effect and Scope as Viewed by Bar
ON Hermann, Expert Attached
tn Washington Embassy.

WASHINGTON, June I4.-Baron Her
Manu., agricultural expert of the German
embassy. has received copies of the meat
inspection bill recently passed by the
Reichstag, and with the authorities here has
made a careful study of its purposes and
effects. He made the following statement
on the subject to-day:
lowing to the historical development of
the German empire each one of the confed-
crate states and a great many of the larger
cities had various special laws regulating
meat inspection which were carried out
in different ways according to the impor-
tance which authorities attached to the
protection of public health. These many
different laws n regulations became more
and more an impeachment to trade and to do
away with much disagreeable friction in in
terstate and foreign commerce the confed-
arate states resolved to abolish all these
local laws and restrictions and to create
one law and a uniform system for the
whole empire.
THE new law will require two separate
inspections in the German empire. First
an inspection of the live stock before
slaughtering. then an inspection of the
slaughtered meat, thus giving guarantee
that no meat or meat products coming
from diseased or unwholesome animals
will go to the consumer either in the larger
cities or small villages of the German
empire. This has been urgently required Cor
a long time by all the boards of health as
an absolutely necessary measure for the
protection of public health in a country
thickly populated and partly overcrowded
as Germany is to-day.
IF all the animals slaughtered in Ger
many have TO pass through the double ex-
animation which / have mentioned it is
evident that the meat products of other
countries intended to be imported into
Germany also must pass "A similar Mn
spection. This will be the case in the flu
ture for all the countries importing meat
and meat products into Germany. No dis
elimination will be made against any one
country; all will be treated alike and meat
products, whether they come from Austria,
Denmark. Australia, Argentine or the
United States, when found wholesome at
The port of entry, after having passed the
same inspection to which all home prod
ucts must be subjected, win enter into the
channels of trade without any further
embargo and without finding another in
spection law and different regulations at
the doors of every single state or even
township, as 1t has been the case here
tofore."
In bringing about this uniform system
Baron says the trainers of the
measure were confronted with the diff
Guilty of inspecting certain classes of goods.
such as canned goods, as the opening of
the can would practically destroy the con-
tents. 1t also was felt to be impractical BILE
TO inspect small bits of picked meat and
IL was decided to exclude a few of these
products. Baron Hermann estimates them
at 6 or Z per cent. of the total meat ex-
ports from the United States to Germany
and IL to 2 per cent. of the entire trade
from this country to Germany. He calls at
tention TO the fact that the bill does not ap-
ply TO German colonies, which take a con-
siderable part OF the American export of
canned goods. He believes the chief meat
exports OF the United States will be facili-
tated by the uniform inspection and the
trade increased.
When Baron Hermann was asked If the
measure was to be considered as one Of
protection to German goods against COM
peting foreign goods. similar TO the Amerf-
can tariff laws. he said the tariff idea did
not enter into the calculation.