STATE FOOD COMMISSION LAWS.

The history of legislation and the development of public sentiment in regard to the protection of society from the injury resulting from the manufacture, sale and use of adulterated food, is best written and illustrated by the publication of all the laws that have been enacted on the subject beginning with the very brief provision contained in the revision of 1845. This provision was general and equally applicable to food and drink.

The Act of March 31, 1869, directed its penalties wholly against "persons who shall be employed in making or manufacturing any candy or candies."

Sections 7, 8, 9 and 10 revision of the criminal law in 1874, constituted a comprehensive and systematic code.

The Act of May 26, 1877, "To prevent fraud in the coloring of grain,” assumes that the coloring or fumigation of grain is fraudulent per se, and undertakes to prevent any such coloring or fumigation by penalties. It is one of the laws which the State Food Commissioner is required by law to enforce.

The Act of May 29, 1879, “To regulate the sale of milk, etc.,” is a substitute for, and expressly repeals section 9 of the revision of 1874. The Act of May 31, 1879, "To prevent fraud in the manufacture and sale of butter and cheese," prohibits the sale of any other substance than pure butter under the name of butter.

The Act of June 1, 1881, is an Act "To prevent the adulteration of butter, cheese, etc."

Another Act of June 1, 1881, entitled, "An Act to prevent and punish the adulteration of articles of food, drink and medicine, and the sale thereof when adulterated," both in its title and the body thereof reads. like a revision of all the laws on the subject; yet it does not purport to be a revision and repeals no former law, unless by implication.

The Act of June 14, 1883, is an Act to prevent the adulteration of vinegar.

The Act of June 27, 1885, "To protect the public from imposition in relation to canned or preserved food," simply requires canned goods to bear a mark to indicate the grade or quality of the goods, and the address of the packer. It also requires "soaked goods" to be branded.

An Act of June 14, 1887, "To regulate the manufacture and sale of substitutes for butter," deals fully and in minute detail with all known substitutes for butter, and allows their manufacture and sale under appropriate names, but prohibits their sale as butter. It requires that such substitutes shall be sold for what they are, and that no one shall be deceived by them. It does not undertake to repeal any prior law. An Act of June 16, 1887, "To regulate the sale of veal." An Act of June 7, 1899, "To fix the standard of analysis for milk." The Act of June 14, 1897, "To regulate the manufacture and sale of substitutes for butter," contains eleven sections, embracing almost every conceivable substitute for butter, and may have been intended as a substitute for all prior laws on the subject. It repeals nothing except by implication. Whatever other laws may have been repealed wholly, or only in part, this Act is certainly in force, and those who violate its provisions are liable to be visited by its penalties.

The Act of July 1, 1897, "To fix the standard of analysis for milk," contains one section and provides for determining the standard of analysis for milk.

The Act of April 24, 1901, "To prevent fraud in the branding and sale of process and renovated butter," contains five sections and provides for the branding of process butter as renovated butter with a penalty added for a failure to comply with the law, etc.

It repeals nothing except by implication and it requires this substitute for butter to be sold for just what it is, "renovated butter."

The foregoing are all the laws that have been passed and which are in force in this State except so far as they have been repealed by the Act of May 29, 1879, and by implication at the time of the passage of the Act of April 24, 1899, creating the office of State Food Commissioner.

This Act of April 24, 1899, does not purport to be a revision of the laws on the subject of pure food. It bears internal evidence that it Iwas not so intended.

The contention that the law of 1899 repeals all former laws, and that no penalties can be imposed on those who violate the law prior to July 1, A. D. 1900, is so unreasonable that one is surprised that it is made. The presumption can not be indulged in for a moment that the Legislature created a State officer whose sole duty it is to enforce the laws against impure food, and punish violators thereof, intended to repeal all prior laws and abolish all penalties against those who should be guilty of the acts prohibited, both by the prior law and by the law then enacted.

Another purpose had in view in publishing all the laws enacted upon the subject of food is to demonstrate the necessity of a complete revision of the law, and of its reduction into a consistent body of law, each part of which shall be consistent with every other part.

Realizing the importance of the matters committed to the State Food Commissioner, and the intricate duties attendant upon the opening of a new department of the State government, it is the purpose of the present commissioner to act, in all things, with due care and circumspection, and without such haste as might lead to the necessity of retracing steps taken without deliberate consideration. The de

clared purpose of the law will be kept constantly in view. Advice will be sought from those whose knowledge and experience makes them competent to advise. The great interests to be affected will be promoted and safeguarded to the full extent of his ability.

The field of labor is a new one with many obstacles to be removed, and difficulties to be overcome. He asks the cordial coöperation of his fellow citizens and invites their charitable judgment upon his action in his new field of labor, in which he is not aided or guided by the example or experience of any predecessor in office, but, as a pioneer therein, must work out his own paths, and choose such instrumentalities as may, in his judgment, be best adapted to the accomplishment of the work assigned to him.

ALFRED H. JONES,

Pure Food Commissioner.

A COMPILATION OF THE LAWS OF ILLINOIS RELATING TO THE ADULTERATION OF FOOD AND DRINK.

In Mr. Brayman's Revision of the Statute in 1845, there is but a single section in relation to the unwholesome or adulterated food and drinks.

Section 135 of Chapter 30 is as follows:

§ 135. If any person or persons shall knowingly sell any flesh of any diseased animal, or other unwholesome provisions, or any pernicious or adulterated drink or liquors, every person so offending, shall be fined, not exceeding $100, or imprisoned, not exceeding three months.

This one section contained all the laws on the subject until March 31, 1869, when the Legislature passed "An Act in relation to the Criminal Code of this State, and amendments thereof," Section 8 of which is as follows:

§ 8. Every person who shall be engaged in making or manufacturing any candy, or candies, or shall mix with the same any destructive or poisonous liquid or substance, or shall sell such candy or candies, knowing the same to be so mixed, every such person or persons shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, may be punished by confinement in the county jail for a period of not more than one year, or be fined not more than $1,000, in the discretion of the court before whom the conviction is had.

Sections 7, 8, 9 and 10 of “An Act to revise the laws of Criminal Jurisprudence, approved March 27, 1874," are as follows:

7. OF FOOD, CANDIES, ETC.] § 7. Whoever fraudulently adulterates for the purpose of sale, bread or any other substance intended for food, or any candy or confection, with any substance which is poisonous or injurious to health, and whoever sells or offers or keeps for sale any adulterated bread or other substance intended for food, or candy, or confection, knowing the same to be so adulterated, or shall sell or offer to sell or keep for sale any flesh of any diseased animal or other corrupt or unwholesome provision, shall be confined in the county jail not exceeding one year, or be fined not exceeding $1,000, or both, in the discretion of the court.

8. OF LIQUOR.] § 8. Whoever adulterates, for the purpose of sale, any liquor used or intended for drink, with cocculus, indicus, vitrol, grains of paradise, opium, alum, capsicum, copperas, laurel water, logwood, Brazil wood, cochineal, sugar of lead, or any other substance which is poisonous or injurious to health; and whoever sells or offers or keeps for sale any such liquor so adulterated, shall be confined in the county jail not exceeding one year, or fined not exceeding $1,000, or both.

9. OF MILK.] § 9. Whoever adulterates, for the purpose of sale, any milk with water, chalk or other substance, or knowingly sells any such adulterated milk, shall be confined in the county jail not exceeding one year, or fined not exceeding $500.

10. OF MEDICINE.] § 10.

Whoever fraudulently adulterates for the purpose of sale, any drug or medicine, or sells or offers or keeps for sale any fraudulently adulterated drug or medicinę, knowing the same to be adulterated, shall be confined in the county jail, not exceeding one year, or fined not exceeding $1,000 and such adulterated drugs and medicine shall be forfeited and destroyed.

COLORING GRAIN.

An Act to prevent frauds in the coloring of grain. Approved May 25, 1877, in force July 1, 1877.

Section 1. COLORING GRAIN. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That no person shall subject, or cause to be subjected, any barley, wheat or other grain, to fumigation, by sulphur or other material or to any chemical or coloring process, whereby the color, quality or germ of such grain is affected.

NOT TO BE ON SALE.]

§ 2. No person shall offer for sale, or procure to be sold, any barley, wheat or other grain, which shall have been subjected to such fumigation, or other process as provided in section one (1) of this Act, knowing such barley, wheat or other grain to have been so subjected. § 3. PENALTY.] Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred (100) dollars, nor more than one thousnad (1,000) dollars and imprisonment not exceeding three months in the county jail, and shall also be liable for all damages sustained by any person injured by such violation.

84. How FINES COLLECTED.] Any court of record shall have jurisdiction over this Act, and all fines under this Act shall be collected as the statute provides in other criminal cases.

Approved May 25, 1877.

An Act to regulate the sale of milk, and to provide penalties for the adulteration thereof. Approved May 29, 1879, in force July 1, 1879.

Section 1. ADULTERATION, PENALTY.] Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That whoever shall, for the purpose of sale for human food, adulterate milk with water or any foreign substance, or whoever shall knowingly sell for human food, milk from which cream has been taken, without the purchaser thereof being informed or knowing the fact, or whoever shall knowingly sell for human food, milk from which what is commonly called "strippings” has been withheld, without the purchaser thereof being informed or knowing the fact, or whoever shall knowingly sell for human food milk drawn from a diseased cow, knowing her to be so diseased as to render her milk unwholesome, or whoever shall knowingly sell for human food, milk so tainted or corrupt as to be unwholesome, or whoever shall knowingly supply, or bring to be manufactured into any substance for human food, to any cheese or butter factory or creamery, without all interested therein knowing or being informed of the fact, milk which is adulterated with water or any foreign substance, or milk from which cream has been taken, or milk from which what is commonly called "strippings" has been withheld, or milk drawn from a diseased cow, knowing her to be so diseased as to injure her milk, or milk so tainted or corrupted as to be unwholesome, or whoever shall knowingly with the intent to defraud take from milk after it has been delivered to a cheese factory, or butter factory or creamery, to be manufactured into any substance for human food, for or on acount of the person supplying the milk or cream, or shall with like intent, knowingly add any foreign substance to the milk or cream, whereby it or the product thereof shall become unwholesome for human food, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and for each and every such misdemeanor shall be fined not less than twenty-five (25) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100) or confined in the county jail not exceeding six (6) months, or both, in the discretion of the court.