South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-01-01
UNCLE SANS HIRED
MEN WHO SERVE IN
FARM DEPARTMENT
Chief Agricultural Lawyer in
United States is Robert
". Williams.
BY JOHN Il. SANFORD.


This is one Of a series OF
articles this publication is run
ming. i'm cooperation with the Il.
s. department OF agriculture, 10
acuuaint our readers with the
type of men who are making
possible the wonderful service
the department is rendering and
stands ready 20 render our read
ers that those not now availinS
themselves of these services may
do sO.-EditOr.
The solicitor of the United states
department OF agriculture, whose
name is Robert w. Williams. has a
man size job.
The department. through its II
bureaus. touches the life Of every
persons in the United States at
some point. extends its influence in
TO every state, territory and posses
sion and into foreign countries. and
affects a large proportion Of public
and private activities.
only part of its work is concern
ed with the maintenance and i'm
prOvement of plant and animal in
dustries. 1t also must protect the
public from fraud, from Imposition,
from infection by deieteriUus sub
stances in food and clothing: il must
protect the wild life of the country
and the forests and the water power
resources. And it must exercise
special supervision over the plants
and domestic animals which are its
traditional province, see that they
are free from outside influences
which will spread cOntagion and
loss, and that they are handled in
a way consistent with humanity and
public welfare.
Governed by 50 Laws.
To carry out this part of the de
partments duties. congress has en-
acted about so general laws on the
statute books.
Every pound Of meat and meat
products i'm interstate commerce
comes under the federal meat in
speCtion law; cattle i'm transit come
under a law which requires that
they shall be fec at least once in
IS hours. cattle on the range or
farm are protected by the livestock
quarantine law. and the virus. ser
um and toxin law.
one of the laws by which plant
industry is protected is the plant
quarantine act Another is the seed
importation law. under which s.
100000 pounds of impure seed was
denied entry last year.
The purity and safety of the pub
lies food is guarded by the food
and drugs act; the purity of the va
rious pest eXterminatOrs by the i'm
1ecticlde and fungiCide law
Then there is a group of laws
which protect the public i'm the mar
keting of range. farm and forest
products. These include the federal
warehouse act, the grain standards
act the cotton futures act, and the
standard container act
Another group is concerned with
the national forests. and another
with The protection of game. espe-
cially migratory birds Highways
come under the federal air roads
law. There are laws governing the
quality of fertilizer and dozens Of
laws reEarding relations with state
agricultural institutions.
Has Large Lcga! stan.
The department works in cOopera-
ton with the United States depart-
ment of justice In many matters;
but with the exception of the attor-
ney generals Office there is no other
department of the government which
has SO much work TO do in connec-
lon with the administration and en-
tCrcemeut Of protective measures.
To carry out this work the depart
meut has a staff of about Al LAWYERS
Some of them are in Washington.
others are in branch Offices
throughout the United States. and
some are in land title Offices often
they so into court. and frequently
they spend weeks and months pre-
pairing a case 20 he turned over TO
the department oC justice often
they meet with hard lighting To
be head of its legal staff requires
legal knowledge, energy. experience
with men and affairs. and the abil-
ity TO hold the loyalty and zest of an
army OF trained men, each one Of
whom knows he is earning every
cent he receives.
The job of chief lawyer is called
solicitor and il is filed by Robert
W.. Williams OF Tallahassee. Fla. He
is 43 years old. and ne has been I'm
the government service Is Years.
He was called 10 the solicitors Of
nee from the biological survey in
1907, when the food and drugs act
began 10 demand an energetic ex-
pert 90 interpret and enforce it, The
meat inspection act and the most ef-
fecuye portions of the 2S-hour law
We're also new at that time and
were bcElnuing 10 make extra work
Tor the Office. For q time he had
charge of the legal office Of the for
est service. and returned 10 the soli-
CitOr's Office when IL took over the
forestry work. In 1915. he became
FIRST assistant and TOR time acting
solicitor. and In April 1920. when
solicitor William NJ. Williams was
appointed commissioner OF internal
revenue. he succeeded TO the solicit
torship.
last Year Broke Record.
During the last year. 1858 cases
of violations OF statutes were re-
ported 20 the department OF justice.
az written legal opinions rendered.