The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1906-06-22
ALLFOR THE WORSE
President Roosevelt Explains His
Objection to the Proposed Meat
Inspection Bill.
SAYS IT is VERY, VERY BAD.
"If They Had Deliberately Designed
to Prevent Remedying Evils
Complained of They Could
Not Have Done Worse"

Washington, June 16.-Chairman
Wadsworth, of the house committee
on agriculture, Friday night made pub
lie the correspondence between Presi-
dent Roosevelt and himself regarding
the meat inspection bill prepared by
the committee.
The president in his letter says that
almost every change in the house
amendment was for the worse, and in
his judgment $50 framed as to mini.
mize the chance of roofing out the
evils in the packing business" In his
reply Mr.. Wadsworth declares the
president is Every, very wrong" in his
estimate of the committees bill, and
concludes with an expression of re-
greet that the president should feel JUS
titled in impugning the competency Of
a committee of the house of represent.
atives. "You have no warrant for it,
said Mr.. Wadsworth, in closing.
The presidents letter follows:
my dear Mr.. Wadsworth: I have
gone over your bill very carefully and
not only obtained report from Mr..
McCabe, as l told you | would, but
also obtained a report from Mr.. Rey-
nolds on it. | am sorry to say the
more closely / investigate your pro-
posed substitute, the worse / find it.
Almost every change is one for the
worse; so that it hardly seems neces-
sary for me to enumerate them. Per-
haps the amendment as you have now
drafted it is not quite as bad as it
was when you submitted it to me in
the first instance; but it is very, very
bad. There seems to be one point in
which it is possible that the amend
ment is even worse that the original
amendment, if, as seems likely, there
is no provision for making plants ac-
cessible at all hours to the inspectors.
In any event, l am sorry to have to
say that this strikes as an amendment
which, no matter how Internationally,
is framed so as to minimize the chance
of roofing out the evil in the packing
business. Doubtless it suits the pack
ers, who object to thoroughgoing in
spection, much better than the senate
amendment, and l have no doubt that
not only the packers, but their allies
in business and those stock growers
who are influenced by them, would pre-
fer it. But am convinced 1t would IN
the long run, be heavy blow to the
honest stock raiser and the honest
packer to adopt these provisions rather
than the far better ones contained
in the senate amendment; for, as COM
pared with the senate amendment this
proposed amendment which you tell
me is that of the majority Of the house
committee, would hamper in the most
grossly improper fashion the secre-
tary of agriculture, in doing the work
which you have appointed him to do,
and will prevent even so much of this
work as can be done at all from be-
ing well and thoroughly done. If the
bill should go through in the form that
the majority of your committee pro-
poses it might be that l should sign
1t as working certain slight improve
ment over the present law, but, if so,
I should accompany it by memoran-
dunn explicitly stating how grave the
defects were, and can not even prom
Use to sign it, because the provisions
(about the courts, as web as about
other matters,) are so bad that, in
my opinion, if they had been deliber-
ately designed to prevent the remedy
ing of the evils complained of they
could not have been worse.
at seems to me that the surest way
10 keep our foreign trade from us,
and, indeed, our interstate trade like
wise, in a thoroughly unsatisfactory
and to prevent it's resuming
he position which it formerly had, IS
% enact the law in the shape proposed
N the amendments submitted to me
by you.
Sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
Hon. James w. Wadsworth, chair
nan committee on agriculture, house
~ ranracentativac