The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1906-06-06
REVEAL HORRORS
OF MEAT PACKING
President Conveys Mes
sage to Congress.
INSPECT STOCK YARDS.
Conditions Existing in Chicago Packing
Houses, According to the Report
Submitted, are Revolving.

Washington, June 5. The following
is President Roosevelt's message to
Congress on the packing house evils,
read yesterday:
The Senate and House of Represen-
tatives: | transmit herewith the re-
port of MIR. James Bronson Reynolds
and Commissioner Charles p. Neill. the
special committee whom appointed to
investigate into the conditions in the
stock yards of Chicago and report
thereon to me. This report is of a pre-
liminary nature. / submit it to YOU
now because it shows the urgent need
of immediate action by the congress in
the direction of providing drastic and
thorough-going inspection by the fed
eral government of all stock yards and
packing houses, and of their products.
so far as the latter enter into inter
state or foreign commerce. The condi-
tions shown by even this short inspec-
tion to exist in the Chicago stock wards
are revolving. 1t is imperatively neces-
sary in the interest of health and of
decency that they should be radically
changed. Under the existing law it is
wholly impossible to secure satisfactory
results.
The report shows that the stock wards
and packing houses are not kept even
reasonably clean, and that the method
OF handling and preparing food pro-
ducts is uicicailiy and dangerous TO
health. Under existing law the nation
al government has no power to enforce
inspection of the many forms of pre-
pared meat food products that are dailv
going from the packing houses into
Interstate commerce. Owing to the in
adequate appropriation the department
OF agriculture is not even able to place
inspectors in all establishments desir-
ing them. The present law prohibits
the shipment of uninspected meat to
foreign countries, but there is no pro-
vision forbidding the shipment of unin-
spected meat in Interstate commerce.
and thus the avenues of Interstate
commerce are left open to traffic in dis
eased or spoiled meats. If, as has been
alleged on seemingly good authority,
further evils exists, such as the i'm
proper 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 the
meat product. The evil seems to be
much less in the sale of dressed car
casses than in the sale of canned and
other prepared products.
In my judgment the expense of the
inspection should be paid by fee levied
on each animal slaughtered. If this is
not done, the whole purpose of the law
can at any time be defeated though an
insufficient appropriation; and whenever
there was no particular interest in the
subject 1T wonld be not only easy but
natural thus to make the appropriation
insufficient. If there were not this
consideration should favor the govern.
ment paying for the inspection.
Let me repeat that under the present
law there is practically no method Of
stopping these abuses if they should he
discovered to exist. Legislation is
needed in order to prevent the posi-.
bility of all abuses in the future. " no
legislation is passed, then the excellent
results accomplished by the work of
this special committee will endure onlv
so long as the memory of the commit
tees work is fresh, and a recrudescence,
OF the abuses is absolutely ertain
urge the immediate enactmer,t ;rt
law of provisions which will enable tho
department of agriculture alternately
to inspect the meat and meat-food
products entering into Interstate co,o-
mercc and to supervise the mcthod, or
preparing the same, and to prescribe
the sanitary conditions under which tbc
work shall be performed. therefore
commend to your favorable consider,
ton and urge the enactment of snh.
stantially the provisions known as son
ate amendment No. 20 to the act, max
ing appropriations for the department
OF agriculture for the fiscal year ending
June 80, 1907, as passed by the senate
Ch's amendment being commonly known
as the Bcvcridge amendment.
THEODORE Ro0SEVELT.
me White House, June 4, 1906.