466 ANNUAL EEPOETS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



ing the inspection and grading of grain under the act, the licensing 

 of inspectors performing such work, and the activities of the de- 

 partment called for by the provisions of the act, and issued as 

 Circular 70 of the Office of the Secretary. 



SUPERVISION. 



For the effective enforcement of the act the United States was di- 

 vided into 32 supervision districts, the office of Federal Grain Super- 

 vision in each district being put into operation on December 1, 1916, 

 under a grain supervisor. These offices were located at markets 

 available to all other grain marketing points in the territory covered 

 and are equipped with laboratory apparatus for investigational work 

 and for the determination of the grade of grain handled in super- 

 vision work and for the determination of cases involving appeals 

 and disputes. Four additional offices were equipped for operation 

 on July 1, 1917. As one of the offices established on December 1 has 

 been discontinued, 35 offices are now in operation. 



Inspectors of grain are licensed by the Department of Agriculture 

 but are not employees of the department. The work of licensing 

 and supervising inspectors is reported on a later page. Service and 

 Kegulatory Announcements Nos. 14, 17, and 25 give information to 

 the public regarding boundaries of the supervision districts, location 

 of offices of Federal grain supervision, licensed inspectors, and re- 

 lated matters. 



TRAVELING SUPERVISORS. 



A constant effort has been made to make uniform the procedure 

 followed in the field offices in the supervision of inspection and grad- 

 ing work. Five of the most experienced and competent grain super- 

 visors have been designated as traveling supervisors in addition to 

 the regular duties at their own stations. These traveling supervisors 

 have visited the supervision offices in the territory assigned to them, 

 checking up the work of such offices and insuring uniformity in the 

 activities conducted in the Federal grain supervision work. 



CONTACT WITH LICENSED INSPECTORS AND GRAIN TRADE. 



Licensed inspectors performing inspection and grading work under 

 the provisions of the act and all parties affected by the operation of 

 the act have been advised through personal visits b}^ the supervisors 

 in the respective districts, through correspondence, and through pub- 

 lished announcements, as to the operation of the act and the interpre- 

 tations placed by the department upon different provisions of the 

 act and the rules and regulations of the Secretary thereunder as 

 applied to specific cases presented to the department. This activity 

 has resulted in close cooperation with the grain trade and insured the 

 uniform application of the provisions of the act. The published 

 announcements were issued as Service and Regulatory Announce- 

 ments Nos. 13, 15, 17, and 18. 



STANDARDS FOR SHELLED CORN AND WHEAT. 



Official grain standards of the United States for shelled corn were 

 promulgated on September 1 and were published as Service and 



