The Washington times., 1911-02-01
MANN FATHERS BILL
FOR HONEST WEIGHT
Trade Frauds Inspire At
tempt to Make National
Law to Punish Offenders.

The pound is going to consist or SIX
teen ounces in this country, the bushel
Of four real, life-sized pecks, the ton OF
1000 of these sixteen-ounce pounds, ana
SO on, II Congress passes bill Whlch
has Just been reported to the House by
the Interstate Commerce Committee.
Representative Mann of Illinois is
author of the measure, and II designs
to enforce honest weights and meas
ures by requiring actual weight OF con-
tents to be printed on all. containers. II
IT becomes law, a quart of canned to-
matoes will be labeled as quart and
II there isn't full quart effective pen
alties will be provided for the misrep-
resentation. Likewise as to all other
articles sold by weight and measure.
The manufacturer who fills five quart
bottles out of a gallon of whisky will
find himself in trouble the first time one
Of the bottles gets sold on the repre-
sentation that it contains legal quart.
Frauds Were Astonishing.
Frauds that have been perpetrated on
the public through trade custom as
founded the committee during its hear
ings on the bill. One witness produced
a package of a well-known breakfast
food.
This package and label are known
everywhere he said. Till two years
ago it was stamped two pounds and
actually contained two pounds. 1t was
reduced TO twenty-four ounces, ana
later to twenty and half ounces. II
looks exactly as formerly, Is known IN
the trade as the two-pound package
and most buyers think 1t Is Ihe
weight. however, is no longer stamped
on it,
Another witness presented to the COM
mittee a tin container Of sliced break
fast bacon which Is widely advertised
He produced also an advertisement or
the goods. This JAR" read the adver-
tisement, contains at least five slices
more than you will ordinarily get out
of a pound" But it carefully refrained
from saying that there was a pound.
though giving the impression that there
was over a pound. 1T really contains
fourteen ounces" concluded the witness
Underweight Packages.
Another extensively exploited break
fast food was shown to the committee.
Quoted to the trade on the basis of
'thirty-six two-pound boxes" these
two-pound packages contained only
twenty-eisht ounces each, and were la
beled as containing only that. They
were advertised, quoted, and sold as
containing two full pounds, but when
actually delivered their labels showed
that they had been shaved about Il per
cent
One witness told the committee that
lard put up and advertised as three
mound fiVe-pound, and ten-pound pals,
never contained the full amount sup
posed to be given. 1t was stated that
there was only one manufacturer IN the
whole country who put full weight into
his lard pals.
The National Association of Stewards,
representing the buyers for hotels,
steamship lines, etc, took an active
part in pressing the legislation, and its
witnesses told the committee of a long
list of such abuses. Potatoes, apples,
and other articles commonly are sold
by the barrel, on the assumption that a
barrel contains three bushels. But as
matter of fact witnesses declared that
there was commonly from one to two
pecks' shortage.
strawberry Boxes.
The uplifted bottom Of the strawberry
box came in for some Illuminating sta
tistical analysis. 1t was shown that
about ten million quart boxes" of ber-
ries are sold in New York in season;
sold as quart boxes, too. The food au-
thorities of the State found that all of
them were from to 20 per cent short
by actual measure. The honest straw
berry box is said to be absolutely un-
known in the trade.
All manner of preserves, canned
goods, jellies, and the like were inves-
tIgated. Nobody seemed to think the
contents need maintain any fixed rela-
tion to the claim made, by the label.
The honest package, by weight or
measure, seemed the rare exception.
Commissioners and inspectors of weights
and measures from all parts of the
country were heard by the committee,
and they all told the same story, with
some variations. The committee decided
that the bill ought to pass, though the
advocates of the trade custom of
misrepresenting weights persisted that
It would only result in necessarily rails
ing prices.
Anyhow, Representative Mann and
the committee think the bill is one that
NAV have a distinct impression on the
cost of living, and they are going to