890 ANNUAL, REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



PUBLICATIONS OF TBCE OFFICE. 



In addition to the 329 notices of judgment, published by authority 

 of section 4 of the food and drugs act, and discussed in detail in 

 another part of this report, the Oliice issued 17 circulars embodying 

 decisions of the courts construing statutes which are intrusted to the 

 Department for execution. Thirteen of these embodied decisions on 

 cases arising under the twenty-eight hour law, one under the food 

 and drugs act, one on the railroad right of way act, one on the live 

 stock quarantine act, one being a collection of authorities on the 

 subject of judicial notice of Departmental regulations. These cir- 

 culars are sent, promptly upon issue, to each of the federal judges 

 and United States attorneys. 



On October 2, 1909, the Office issued an annotated edition of the 

 twenty-eight hour law. This had been in contemplation for some 

 time. There are few Federal dockets in the country which do not 

 include cases arising under this act, and in view of the fact that over 

 40 decisions have been rendered upon it by the district and circuit 

 courts, the circuit courts of appeals, and the Supreme Court of the 

 United States, the publication of the volume was felt to be justified. 



STATUS OF OFFICE WORK. 



The foregoing summary of the work of tliis Office, while giving as 

 much as can be expressed statistically, does not convey an adequate 

 idea of the volume or character of business transacted or the special 

 knowledge required to dispose of it. No reference has been made to 

 many matters, which have entailed large demands upon our time. 

 I may mention, as a typical instance of this, the work incident to the 

 transfer to the United States of two large tracts of land in Prince 

 George County, Md., where an experimental dairy farm has been 

 established, which was effected at the close of the past fiscal year, 

 the consideration being $25,000. The property was largely en- 

 cumbered, there were a number of grantors, and the time witliin 

 which the transfer had to be made was short. This Office cooper- 

 ated to the fullest extent with the United States attorney and the 

 special attorneys in charge of title work for the Department of Justice, 

 in this matter. The normal growth of existing lines of work, coin- 

 cident with the increasing activities of the other branches of the 

 Department, would, in itself, have very greatly enlarged the duties 

 of the Office; in addition to this, however, General Order No. 138, 

 placing the legal work of the Forest Service under my immediate 

 direction, has practically doubled the number of employees of the 

 Office as well as the amount of business to be handled. Toward the 

 close of the past fiscal year it became necessary to move the office 

 q^uarters in order to provide for the additional force. At the present 

 time, \\dth the exception of the main office of the Solicitor, all the 

 offices, including the library, are under one roof. The change has 

 not only provided more desirable quarters, but afforded an excellent 

 opportunity for a complete reorganization of the force, which has 

 been effected. 



The morale of the Office is high; the personnel is of the best. The 

 work is current, and extra time is being cheerfully and consistently 



