The Monticellonian., 1906-07-05
A REVIEW OF THE WORK
 ACCOMPLISHED BY CONGRESS
Passed the Meat Inspection, Railroad Rate and Pure Food Bills at the Close Many Important Measures Become Laws--Most Notable Session in Last
 Quarter of a Century.


 Friday the execution of its legislative programme and adjourned Saturday.
 On the eve of adjournment the diff ference between the house and senate on the important bills pending were adjusted. As a result of the action taken the following measures were laid before the president for his approval:
 The railroad rate act
 The agricultural appropriation bill, Including the meat inspection amend ment
 The pure food act.
 The president signed the railroad rate bill at :45 Friday night. It goes into effect in 50 days.
 New Epoch in Legislation.
 Had rothing else been done this con- gress these measures would stand out as monuments to the present national administration. In emphatic manner they mark the beginning of a new epoch in federal egislation-govern- mental regulation on corporations and the invocation of the police power, so to speak, to stay the hand of private greed and protect the pocketbook and the health and general welfare of the masses.
 In the end the house has had its way mostly regarding the railroad rate bill. Oil pipe lines remain in the meas ure as common carriers, but the com modity provision of the bill has been fixed so as to make the prohibition of
 
 and production apply only to railroad companies" The railroads cannot own coal mines or transport their own products, but Standard Oil and the in dependent oil companies can pipe their own product. The senate yielded on this point because the house refused to give in by an overwhelming vote, and otherwise the whole bill would have died.
 Senator Tillman eontented himself with severe roast" of the Standard Oil influence, and then as the one in charge of the measure voted to accept the conference report. The senate gained part of its contention in a readiustment of the anti-pass feature of the bill which prohibits free trans portation to every one save certain excepted classes, including railroad employees and their families, and the officials, attorneys, surgeons, etc., of the companies.
 House Victory in Meat Bill.
 The meat legislation was a complete victory for the house. The senate agreed to the conference report and the 1oase formally ratified it. There were two points in controversy-the payment for inspection service and the question of putting dates on the labels of cans and packages of meat prod ucts. The government will pay the cost of inspection, instead of the pack CTS, and labels will not require the date of inspection or canning of the contents.
 h announcing the failure of the sen ate conferees to win on these disputed points, Senator Proctor said the bill accomplished great deal, inasmuch as it provides for thorough inspection of all meat products and the sanitary regulation of packing plants, and that the conferees felt they could not lose everything by holding out for distne- tive features which the public would not accept. He paid his compliments to the packers in strong terms and charged them with having engineered the scheme that created sentiment in favor of making the government pay the cost Of inspection. Other senators
 
 troyerted provisions of the measure but finally the conference report was adopted.
 In the house, acceptance of the re- port was pure formality. One i'm pertant new feature of the measure as 1t passed both houses is an added appropriation of s900,000 to the s. 00o,00 for inspection provided in the house amendment. This was brought about by combining the amount orig finally appropriated to the bureau of animal industry for inspection under the old system with the new perma- nent appropriation.
 Pure Food Bill Criticised.
 The conference report on the pure food bill was adopted by both houses without any change In the opinion of Dr. Wiley and other officials of the agricultural department, it is good measure as far as 1t goes, but MT. Mann, of Chicago, who had charge of the conference report, says that it was not as good as had been hoped for It is weak ia that it does not provide a standard by which drugs, foods and drinks can be measured to determine whether they comply with the law That important question is referred to the courts. which under the bill as 1t will become law must add to their already great burden the consideration of cases raising the issue as to wheth- CT certain articles of food or drugs contain harmful ingredients, are mis- branded or because of their labels vio- late the pure food law.
 Canal Type Is Fixed.
 With the adjournment of congress 1t is possible to make a survey of the entire field of important legislation enacted during the session The three most prominent measures already have been referred to. and their gen. eral provisions are well known to the country Next in point of interest perhaps comes the Panama canal act The honse first declared in favor of