The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-01-14
LAWS IN CONFLICT
GENERAL BoNAPAfsTR GIVES OUT IMPORTANT
 OPINION,
The Purpose of the F-are Food Law is Altogether Dimerenf from That Reinting to Internai,
 Retenue..

Retenue.
 weeks the National Wholesale Liquor Dealers Association has been. making capital out of the fact that the regula- tions of the internal revenue bureau of the Treasury Department. respecting the branding of whiskies and the opinion rendered by Attorney General Bonaparte q der the pure food and drug act were in conflict.
 The whiskeyN Dealers Assocdtion pointed to the fact that the Internal Revenue Bureau. through it's guagers Gas branding distillates as ,whtskeys, fpms or gfhs, irrespective Of the At- torney Generals opinion given to the Agricultural Department that; such dlstillates should be marked high wines. alcohol or spirits. Tn response to request from the Secretary of the Treasury for an opinion. the Attorney General has forwarded to Secretary Cortelyou an opinion "bearing on tho marking ana branding of caslrs Of packages containingS distilled spirits -Sy gaugers of ths Internal Revenue
 In this he holds that. while the law requiring such marking or branding is not repealed by the pure food law. SO called. the present regulations of
 
 are not justified by the terms of Sec- tion a2s7. of the revisedNstatutes. and distilled spirits when they are with drawn from the receiving cistern at the dIstillery. must be marked high winesY wheA the distillate drawn con- tains all the substances congeneric with alcohol. They must be marked 'alcohol% when the dlstiliate is one from which practically all such con- 0a0aPfr auhafauaaa havA hMNN rAfylov- ed. They must be marked rum" awhisixey.' brandy" or "gin" or with some particular name of a potable spirit as the casea may be. [
 In an oficial statement made public by the Department Of Justice it Is stated:
 'rhe Attorney General states that it Is obvious that the purpose of the pure food, law is altogether different from that of the provision of law relating to .internalsrevepue. and that under the usual rules of construction the lam guaEe of the later statute is to be harmonized. if possible. with that. of the earlier and will be held to have modified the earlier only insofar as they are plainly in conflict. In the event. however, of an evident conflict between the terms of the two enact- menss. those of the later are of course held to prevail. The Attorney General finds nothing in@the pure food law re- ueaiing expressly or by implication the terms of Sections 32S3 and 3eTs of the Revised Statutes. He considers the re- quirement in Section s2s7 that the inc ternal revenue gauger must mark Aon the casix or package 'the particular name of suchk distilled spirits as is known to th3 trade--that is to say. high wines. alcohol or spirits, as the case may be-" And states that in his opinion the words las the case may be- apply only to the word spirits and not to the words ''high winss" or ''9i. >cohoI."
 The Attorney General is of the npinioR that Section 3349 of the- Re- vised Statutes which forbids the ship ping. transportation or removal of any spirituous or fermented liquors or wine under other than the proper name or brand known to the trade as designat- ing the kind and quality of the con- tents of the casks or packages con taiping theIsane under penalty of for- feiture and fine is repealed by Sections as they refer to Interstate commerce or to trade in the District of Co., lumbia, or any Territory.
 He is clearly of the opinion. hows ever, that the function of the gauger in marking q certain cask or package containing a distilled spirits might un- doubtedly make the character ofAnn act relating to. interstate commerce. oe to transaction in the District Of Co., lumbia or one of the territories and advises the Secretary of the Treasury that the regulations of the Commis- framed with these facts in view. SO that the brandiag by gauger of . cask oS paekase as rye. Bourbon or 'copper distiIled'' whiskey would Oven if not beyond the provisions sof Section 32S7 be contrary to the terms of the pure food law unless such mark was strictly, in accprdance with the facts in the case. fin this connection che Attorney General said in part:
 Tt is needless to add that the law evidently would not sanction the mark ing of the casks or packagea on merely hearsay information obtained from the distiller or his representative. Such practice would amount to allowing . Eianufacturer to mark his own pro- ducts and have. .She United States with out inquiry, guarantee the accuracy Of the marking"
 Comrnissioner of Internal Revenue Capers was asked for ah expression on the Attorney Generals opinion and re- piled that 1t would be impossible fog him to state in so short time as nc had to review the opinion and It's of. feet upon the existing regulations og the Internal Revenue Bureau. That C will call for some changes in the reg uiations is certain, however. hS said, and the .regulations of the, Internal Revenue Bureau will be socframed as to bring about, so far as possible. uni@ formity of action between the agricul-