Monroe City Democrat. (Monroe City, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1912-10-03
ENEMIES OF PURE FOOD LAW
Famous Chemist Believes the Health
Of the Nation Demands Election
Of the Democratic
Ticket.
BY HARVEY w. WILEY.
(Former Chief Chemist Of the U. 8.
Department Of Agricultural

like myseH, have been lifelong hepuD- /
leans. believe that no kind of an :
administration is going to ruin the ,
country. have high personal re-
gard for each one of the candidates for
president and president on all
the tickets. All the political platforms /
are mainly sound and all promise eff
fort in behalf of the whole people. My
choice is not based on platform. 1t
was determined by my impressions of
the real attitude of the candidates re-
specting the public welfare. We are
creatures of heredity and environ
ment. In our attitude towards great
public questions we are almost alto
gether creatures of environment.
What two men are by environment
least likely to be swayed by special
interests and most likely to be guided
by devotion to public welfare? Two
of the candidates have already been
tried in the presidential chair and we
know by experience what may be eX
pected II either of them resume his
former seat on March 4, 1913. Mr..
Roosevelt by reason Of his attitude to-
wards the food and drug act aban-
doned the consumers of the country
to the rapacity OF a few mercenary
manufacturers. Under authority OF
congress ! had carried on extensive
experiments with my so-called poison
squad and found that certain sub
stances, viz, benzoic compounds, sui
phurous compounds and sulphate of
copper (blue stone), were injurious to
health.
The law conferred upon me, as chief
Of the bureau of chemistry, the duty
| of acting as q grand jury and deter
mining whether foods and drugs were
adulterated or misbranded. Instead
| Of appealing from my decisions to the
courts as the law requires, the users
| Of these poisons appealed to President
| Roosevelt. He not only listened to
them, but he abrogated the plain pro-
| visions Of the law, appointed "a board
| not contemplated by the law, and d.
rected that these predatory interests
might continue their attacks on the
health OF the people until this board,
unknown to the law, should decide
otherwise.
| Can we safely trust the campaign
for public health to Mr.. Roosevelt? I
cannot believe that to be the proper
course. Mr.. Taft inherited this ex-
Iceedingly bad condition of affairs
from his predecessor and has not
only continued this illegal board un-
der whose patronage adulterators are
still poisoning the people, but he did
worse In the matter Of the adultera-
tion of distilled beverages In which
Roosevelt upheld the legally consti-
tuted authorities, Mr. Taft reversed
that policy and threw the mighty
weight of the executive ONCE to the
support of the worst lot of adultera
tors that, ever disgraced country.
Mr.. Wilson and Mr.. Marshall by
their strenuous efforts In behalf Of the
food laws Of their respective states
have given a positive promise to end
such a threatening state Of affairs
They will support to the utmost the
oficials under the law who are trying
to protect the public health and will
make short shrift of those who have
brought about these present unbeara
BILE conditions.
Wilson and Marshall by their educa
. ton and environment are free from
bias in favor OF predatory interests
. and are inspired by true patriotic yea
in behalf of public welfare.
I support the Democratic nominees
in full knowledge that many of the
prominent Democrats in congress have
. been in full sympathy with the paraly
!. sis OF the food law in behalf of the
unholy dollar. But when the Demo
cratic president and vice-president
lend the aid of their powerful sympa
thy In behalf OF the public health
those Of their own party not In sym
! patty with them VIII be robbed o.
their power for evil. II Roosevelt OIL
Taft be chosen the soldiers of trauS
and adulteration will be impregnablI
entreAched for another four years an(
, benzoAtes, sulphites and adulterateC
alcoholic beverldges will have a new
lease of life.
believe also that President Wils0I
r will renovats the department OF agri
b culture, reeking, as 1t has been fo
. the past twelve years, with scandal
, and favoritism. He win see to it tina
D the bureau of animal industry viii
6 protect the public health instead O
Q the efforts OF the packers to sell dis
aaaad nnaafa undar tina dAoankiu,