Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1912-09-26
He Says TaftsaudT. R. Are Sol
dierS~of Fraud
E 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 Agrculture.)

My appeal is chiefly to those who,
like myself, have been lifelong Repub-
leans. l believe that no kind Of an
administration is going to ruin the
country. l have a high personal re-
gard for each one of the candidates for
president and vice-presideent on all
the tickets. All the political platforms
are mainly sound and all promise eft,
fort in behalf of the whole people. My
choice is not based on a 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 e1;;
pected If either of them resume his
former seat on March 4, 1913. Mr.!
Roosevelt by a of his attitude to-
wards the food and drug act abani
doned the consumers of the country
to the rapacity OF a few mercenary
manufacturers. Under authority OF
congress I 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 iblue %stone), we're Injurious to
health. +
The law conferred upon me, as chief
Of the bureau of chemistry, the duty
Of acting as a 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 10
them, but he abrogated the plain pro.
visions of the law, appointed a board
not contemplated by the law. and di.
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.
c%eedingly bad condition of affairs
from his predecessor and has not
only continued this illegal board un-
der whose patronaae adu!terators are
still Poisoning the "eople, but he did
worse. In the matter of the adultera.
ton 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 office to tho
support Of the worst lot of adulterad
tors that ever disgraced a country.
MIR. 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
officials under the law who are irving
to protect the public health and viii
make short shrift of those who have
brought about these present unbearn
BILE conditions.
Wilson and Marshall by their educa,
ton and environment are free from
bias in favor Of predatory interest:
and are inspired by true patriotic yea
In behalf Of public welfare.
l 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 thu