Los Angeles herald., 1906-06-05

products IS unCleanly ana dangerous
to health.
Under existing law the national
government has no power to enforce
inspection of the many forms of pre-
pared meat food products that are
daily going from the packing houses
into interstate commerce.
Appropriation Is Inadequate
lowing to an inadequate appropria-
tion the department of agriculture is
not even able to place inspectors in all
establishments desiring them. The
present law prohibits the shipment OF
uninspected meat to foreign countries,
but there is no provision forbidding
the shipment of uninspected meats in
interstate commerce, and thus the
avenues of interstate commerce are
left open to traffic in diseased or
spoiled meats.
IF, as has been alleged on seemingly
good authority other evils exist. such
as the improper use of chemicals and
dyes the government lacks power to
remedy them.
"a law is needed which will enable
the inspectors of the general govern
ment to inspect and supervise from the
hoof to the can the preparation of meat
food products. The evil seems to be
much less in the sale Of dressed car
casses than in the sale of canned and
other prepared products.
How to Meet Expenses
'In my Judgment the expenses of the
inspection should be paid by a fee
levied on each animal slaughtered. If
this is not done an Insufficient ap-
preparation, and whenever there was
no particular interest in the subject,
it would not be only easy but natural
thus to make the appropriation INSULT
cient. If it were not for this consid-
GRAFTON I should favor the government
paying for it.
"The alarm expressed in certain
quarters concerning this feature should
be allayed by a realization of the fact
that in no case, under such a law, will
the cost of inspection exceed 8 cents
per head.
II call special attention to the fact
that this report is preliminary and that
the investigation is still unfinished. 1t
is not yet possible to report on the
alleged abuses in the use of deleterious
chemical compounds in connection
with canning and preserving meat
products, nor on the alleged doctoring
in this fashion of tainted meat and of
products returned to the packers as
having grown unstable from age or
from other reasons.
Legislation Is Needed
Grave allegations are made in
reference to the abuses of this nature.
Let me repeat that under the present
law there practically is no method of
stopping these abuses If they should
be discovered to exist. Legislation Is
needed in order to prevent the posi-
bility of all abuses in the future.
"If no legislation Is passed, then the
excellent results accomplished by the
work of this special committee will en-
dure only so long as the memory of
the commissions work is fresh and re-
crudescence of the abuses Is absolutely
certain.
Il urge the immediate enactment
into law of provisions which will en-
able the department of agriculture
adequately to inspect the meat and
meat food products entering into in
terstate commerce and to supervise the
methods of preparing the same. and
to prescribe the sanitary conditions
under which the work shall be" per-
formed.
Il therefore commend to your fav-
orable consideration and urge the en-
actment of substantially the provisions
known as Senate Amendment No. 20
to the act making appropriations for
the department of agriculture for the
passed by the senate. this amendment
being commonly known as the Beve-
ridge amendment
THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
Filth Is Everywhere
The report says that two and one
half weeks We're spent in the inves-
tigation in Chicago, during which 1--WE
Went through the principal packing
houses in the stock yards district, to-
gether with a few of the smaller ones"
A day was spent by Mr.. Reynolds in
New York city in the Investigation of
its leading slaughter houses.
The report says that in many of the
rooms where water is used freely the
floors are soaked and Shiny and the
dark and dingy rooms are naturally
not kept suitably clean.
An absence of cleanliness was found
everywhere in the handling of meat
being prepared for the various meat
food products.
The parts that are sent from the
cooling room to these departments,
where various forms of meat products
are prepared, are handled with no re-
gard whatever for cleanliness. The
workers climb over heaps of meat Sc
lect the pieces they wish and frequent
ly throw them down upon the dirty
floor beside their bench.
Shovel Meat From Floor
an a word" the report adds, 1--WE
saw meat shoVeled from filthy wooden
floors, piled on tables rarely washed,
pushed from room to room in rotten
box carts, in all of which processes 1t