New Britain herald., 1916-05-11
PACKERS CONVICTED.
 PAY $450 IN FINES
Plead Nolo COntendere to Violat-
 ing Interstate Commerce Laws
FIRST CASES IN COUNTRY
Cudahy Packing Go. and Morris & Go. Admit Technical Violations in New Agriculture Rules

Haven and Bridgeport of Dept. of
 Agriculture Rules.
 New Haven, May 11.-The cases brought by the United States against branch houses of the Cudahy Pack ing company in New Haven and Bridgeport, and of Morris & Co.,, in Bridgeport, charging violation of the rules of the department of agricuI- ture concerning the inspection of meats in unofficial houses' of the meat packers have been settled without trial by payment of fines ag- gregating $45O with costs, it was an- nounced today. Trials before a jury of the local managers of the branch houses mentioned were to have been started today and United States Dis opinion that three weeks would be necessary for the taking Of evidence.
 The defendants entered a plea to the effect that they would not con- tend and Judge Thomas imposed a Ill16 OI 3AOU dHu COStS edCn upon DOLn the Cudahy and the Morris company on the Bridgeport complaint which involved seventeen counts each, and $50 and costs against the Cudahy company on the New Haven com plaint, which embraced two counts of a different character
 First Cases in the Country.
 The managers of the branch houses who were mentioned as defendants were J. A. Grove for the Cudahy Co.,, in New Haven, J. A. Coughlin for the Cudahy company, in Bridge port and George D. Roberts for Morris & Co.,, in New Haven. These were the first cases to be brought in the country.
 The allegations involved interpreta- ton of rules of the department of agriculture relative to the inspection of meat in, interstate comm cree, rules which congress in 1906 gave the department a right to make '.Un- official' or processing houses of the meat packers are those branch es- tablishments in which meat is re- handled and in which there are no government inspectors. The govern ment claimed that where meats were sent from the main or official houses to a branch house the latter is obliged to have the same reinspected or relabelled, etc., if sold in inter- state trade, despite the fact that the meats were officially inspected and stamped in the official house.
 Claimed Technical Violations.
 It was claimed in the Bridgeport cases that a man named Zimmer- man came from New York, bought meats and asked that the same be set out on the platform and he would deliver the consignment to the rail- 1 road company. The violation came, 1 it was charged, in the branch house 1 failing to have the meat reinspected l as it was to go into interstate com l merce. The defendants pointed out 1 that the violation, of such, was a technical one, and they were pre- 1 rared to contest the governments 1 claims.
 In the New Haven case brought i under another rule, where it is pro- 1 vided that goods must be re-stamped | on a separate label to certify that the 1 goods had been passed by an inspec- tor, it was claimed that the manager put the stamp on the original bill of ladlng. Goods regularly inspected and labelled had been shipped from the official house to the local branch but upon arrival here the manager told the railroad company to transfer a portion and send them to Spring field. The defendants here claimed that if there was a violation it was purely technical.
 The packing houses, it is said, were prepared to contest the charges and secure interpretations of the rules appertaining to the cases. However, they paid fines and the cases were dismissed.
 The fines imposed were said by MT. Spellacy to be the heaviest to his knowledge, in any violations of the inspection rules.
 The exact imposition of fines was $40 on the first count and S1O on each other count, in the Bridgeport cases and $25 on each of two counts in the New Haven case.
 II. S. ys. Tobacco Products Co.
 New Haven, May 1.-The case of the United States against the Tobacco Products Co.,, of New Milford was argued before Judge Thomas in the federal court yesterday and decision reserved. Under orders the papers were served and the case heard the same day. The issue involved was the collection of the internal revenue. The company has a process by which it runs tobacco stems through a& machine and turns these out in sheets.
 It makes up what it calls little cigars but the government contends that the sheets are paper and when used on tobacco the product is cigarettes. The tax on the latter is $125 per thousand and on little cigars