The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1907-10-15
SECRETARY WILSON ASSIGNS
FOOD NAM FAcTU RERsg AND
DEALERS no MEMBER.
SHIP THEREIN. IN

VI VI! Secretary Nv iison. There are Sc
many Of them that ere long the Sec
rotary VIII become q Gne Judge OF fal
tsif1ers.. = Z IS
4 The chief of these imitators OF Anan,
las Is thcsdealer in foods or drugs who
says the pure food law is responsible
for the higheriprIces he is asking. He
1 ls3a %ilfil and foolish liar. Jnigine
from his output now the truth never
was in him.
The law. in itself. does not impose
a burden Of one cent on any food Of
drug manufacturer. 1t is true that
many manufacturers have hired law
yers and commissioned them to dis
cover ways for eyallng the law. Law,
yers Of that kind are! expensive, and to
pay their fees the manufacturer who
Is trying to get around the law may
find It necessary to increase prices.
To call the statute a pure food law
Is to convey false impression. From
the name 1t might be inferred that the
statute forbade. the adulteratIon Of
foods. drinks and drugs. The infer
cnce Is wrong. The calling ofiit q
pure food law is simply one Of those
popular and newspaper errors fol
which there is no accounting.
1t Is a square deal law, that's all
If a manufacturer makes .currant jelly
by combining glucose, apply juice and
timothy seed (untllreshed) the law
says he may not ship 1t from one State
10 another without explaining on the
label that It is not currant Jelly at all,
but a mixture Of the ingredients be.
fore named.
The law doesn't care what the lngre.
dients are. Its only concern is to pre-.
went the man who makes currant jel.
" in that way deceiving the man who
really wants currant jelly. Inasmuch
as the federal government has not the
l y i H|Tr I" a = q ra.sa . Z = ~ =
power to proceed against man with.
in the boundaries Of a State, all it can
do is say that the man who makes cur.
rant Jelly in that way shall put a label
on the package which tells the con.
sumner exactly what he is getting for
his money. i.
| . .. s y.
Before the law went into effect on
October the consumer bought eur.
rant jelly" made according to the for.
mula before given, and paid 10 cents
per glass for it. Now. in the District
of Columbia and the territories, IL a
man asks reputable dealer for; and
receives currant jelly he pays rs cents
per glass. But he really gets currant
Jelly. Before the law went into ef.
feet the stuff he got hadn't even cur.
rants enough In 1t to impart currant
flavor.
A manufacturer in Philadelphia may
make currant jelly in the old way
and sell 1t to man in Pittsburg with.
out danger OF being fined under the
federal pure food law. Such a trans.
action would be wholly within Penn.
sylvnnia. and the Keystone pure food
laws would have to take care OF IT.
IL they cover such frauds.
If wholesale liquor dealer takes
pure alcohol and pure water and mix.
es them in equal parts. adds a little
burnt sugar or some Aavoring extract
he produces. what the pure food law
calls an imitation whiskey. II the
mixing is done in Pennsylvania the
mixer is Mt liberty to call It "six.year.
old straight rye" and sell 1t as such
so long as he confines his mixing and
selling to the Keystone Common.
wealth. But the minute he sells any
of 1t outside OF Pennsylvania he is VIC.
lating the so.called pure food law, be.
cause he has put n false aud deceptive
label on the bottle.
Secretary Wilson, In arranging for
the enforcement Of the pure food law.
has had to decide whether certain
things are pure within the meaning OF
the law. But the only reason why he
had to do that was. because the law
forbils false labelling, false branding
and all other forms Of deception which
hitherto have been SO. common, not
only In this but in all other countries.
The COILS trath OF the matter Is that
the manufacturers OF America, taken
as whole. have been more truthful
than manufacturers abroad. The filth.
lest packing house in this country new
er In It's worst days compared in filth.
mess with the filthy packing houses>in
Europe. The Department OF Agrlcul.
ture is prepared to prove that any
time any representative OF any foreign
government here, or elsewhere, under.
takes TO deny the accuracy Of. n state.
ment put out from the department, in
a semi.offlcial manner. In which that
assertion was made.
The only difference, between Enrop.
M N uoyar,, ,,..l