Evening journal., 1907-01-21
FOOD LAW TO
COST MILLIONS
Government Will Appoint In
SpeCtOT For Each State
Of the Union

WASHINGTON, Jan. 21-One million
dollars n year win be the cost to the
United States Government in its en-
forcement OF the pure-food law enacted
by Congress at its last session.
An elaborate scheme OF inpection has
been mapped out by Secretary Wilson
and Prof Wiley, the chemist whose
discovery that strawberry jam consist
ed OF timothy seed and glucose. with
dash of red tiavoring material, and the
other frauds brought on the agitation
which resulted in the pure-food law Of
the last session. Seventy expert
chemists are 70 be appointed. who will
be able 10 ten at a glance whether or
not can OF peas has been doctored
with copper. and whether the deep
rich red Of tomato catsup has been pro-
vided by nature or dyes. These will be
high priced officials. The pay of each
viii be $4,000 a year. which will take
out Of the Federal Treasury neaSiy a
quarter Of a million dollars annually.
Inspector in Each State.
Il is the intention Of the Department
TO assign an inspector 10 each State.
Some OF the larger States like New
York and Pennsylvania win have two
inspectors each. They will be known
as State inspectors, although OF course
thcy viii have no connection whatever
with the state officials. Each man wnl
he charged with the supervision OF
food stuff entering into inter state
commerce and offered for sale in his
territory.
A -,-fr- - To- t,..t1r fr o.. l...ff.
I'm which the chemists win analyzo
canned goods of all kinds and deter
mine whether or not the provisions OF
the law are being lived mp to. Some
Of these workshops are already in oper-
alton. When the Government force has
been developed to its fun strength,
there will be Laboratories at Boston,
New York, Philadelphia, Cincinnati,
Chicago. st. Louis, New Orleans, San
Francisco and Denver.
The cost OF maintaining these instl-
tutions will be considerable. because
high-priced scientists will he in charge
Of each, with a staff Of wen-paid as
sistants. All these expenses viii run
the total cost of administering the
pure-food law up to si.O0OOO0 a year
FOODS Undergoing Strange Changes.
Professor Wiley finds that some Of
the standard articles of food have been
undergoing strange changes In color
during the last few months. Canned
and bottled fruits and vegetables arc
presenting a pale and generally wash
ed-out appearance since the Government
put the ban on analine dyes and harnl-
ful preserving preparations. Tomato
catsup Is now several shades lighter
than the rich red connection formerly
displayed on the shelves OF the grocers.
String beans and peas are resuming
their normal color and are no longer
the startingiy brilliant green which the
copper treatment induces. These are
some OF the reforms brought about by
the new law.
Public to Blame for Bad Foods.
"The public is TO blame" said
Government official, 'for the frauds
and deceptions that have become so
general in the preparation and selling
Of foodstuffs. The manufacturers
merely present their commodities IN
shape and form desired by their Gus
toners, and II the latter get doctored
food supplies they are largely to blame.
For instance who wants to eat pale.
yelowish nlaraschino cherries such as
nature provides when luscious rich red
one can be had? The public demands
the -colored articles, and the manu-
facturer does the rest
The Government viii have to depend
upon the public more or less for the
proper administration Of the pure-fool
law. II win be impossible for tho
limited force OF inspectors to examine
all the canned and bottled goods Of
fered for sale, so that the law might
be frequently violated without the
knowledge Of the Governments repre-
sentatives. The officials wih expect
the housewives TO sound the alarm
when the manufacturers and packers
OF foods resort to their old tricks Of
fraud and deception.