The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-08-05

Pure food legislation has had hard road to travel through State Legisla- lures and through the National Con rress: hut despite obstacles and oppo- sifion. the cause has triumphed and there is now enough legislation, If ade- auately enforced, to stamp out all the rrosser forms of food adulteration and fraud. Opposition to legislation of this kind is rarely open, and iss there fore, the more difficult to fight. The great battles were fought in the State Ieeislatures, and when the States had succeeded in educating public senti- ment to a point where 1t could force members of Congress to act favorabiy. the Federal Bureau of Chemistry was enabled to do it's work.
 Representative James R. Mann of Illinois was the champion of the Food and Drugs Act which was passed two years ago He was not content to base his argument upon chemists re- ports and theories. for he relied upon simple object lessons. For weeks his committee room presented the appear ance of the interior of a fancy gro cery store. When he made his great speech favoring the bill hls desk and the desks of several of his colleagues were covered with cans. pots, glasses and bottles He held up for the in- spection of Congress. jars of raspberry jam which were as innocent of rasp- berries as they were guilty Of timothy seed. He showed his fellow legisla- tors three-pound cans of peaches which contained little more than two pounds of fruit He showed how coal tar dyes could turn simple gluclose lnto almost any kind of fruit preserve.
 The bill became a law. The agfta- tion following the publication of Upton St. clanr's novel, The Jungle, caused
 fsvn.~ t0 m act legislation compelling the great backing houses to "clean up.% The pure food advocates did not get all they asked for in either case. They are stIil fighting for laws which will com- pei packers to print on the label the time of packing and the exact weight of the contents of the package. These things will come in time. perhaps, put the main question just now Is. to ob- tain enforcement of the laws already enacted.
 Since the passage of the Federal law, however, many States have hastened eo make their laws conform with the Federal statutes so that the distinction between interstate and intrastate com merce may be wiped out. Of the new laws. the one passed by the last session of the Legislature of Kentucky is held to be a model one py many pure food advocates. It is interesting to note that this law gives the State food con- froi authorities pfenary 1ower to en- force the pure food requirements in the manufacture of whiskey-- Kentuclxy's 2 most famous product. Until this time the Kentucky pure food laws have not touched the matter of beverages.
 One of tho hardest fights made on the construction of the National Food and Drugs Act has been that on the qles- 4ion. s'What is whiskeyZ The De- partnent of Justice decided that the word sswhiskey'' should be used only for distilled straight" whiskey. and that whislxey made of neutral spirits must be labelled as compound or iml- tation. As only a small percentage or the whiskey made and sold in the country ts straight" the fight has been a bitter one. The ruling of the Department of Justice has been fol- lowed In decisions of the courts ln- volving trademark rights and finally inc Treasury Department directed the branding of whiskey by internal reve- nue authorities in accordance with the pure food regulations. This order is being resisted in the courts. and a long fight is ahead before the question win be settled finally.
 Tn Kentucky the pure food advocates have been working ten years R; M. Allen and M A Scoville have been tary of the Food Control Officers As- socfation, which is now holding the Pure Food Congress at Mackinac Isl- and He has resigned his position in kentucky and is now an assistant att torney-general of the United States uri- der MT Bonaparte. with especial charge of prosecutions of the food laws. Mir. Allen Is responsible for the Kentucky theory, which may be described as the 'splain label policy" If the label tells the truth, then the consumer is at liberty to buy injuri- ous things if he desires. but he must be protected from frauds and counter feits.
 The Kentucky policy of the plain