292 OLEOMAKGARINE. 



servant, or the housewife called for butter she meant oleomargarine, 

 and the dealer, by long experience, knew what she wanted, what she 

 used. 



I know that to be the fact. I know it is the case. I have watched 

 when dealers were selling it, and I have seen customers come in and 

 say, "Give me a pound of butter," or "two pounds of butter." The 

 dealer would wrap up oleomargarine. I have said : " Why did you do 

 that? Those are against your instructions." "Why, I know what she 

 wants. She comes in here and buys it every day. She understands 

 it." And I have iollowed the purchaser out and said: "Do you know 

 you are getting oleomargarine?" "Yes; what business is it of yours," 

 or words to that effect. I know it to be the case, and I will tell you why 

 and how. 



Some years ago I was employed by the Union Dairy Company to 

 defend their retail customers in southern Ohio who were prosecuted 

 under the Ohio color laws. These retailers would appeal to me for 

 my services in cases" where they were charged with selling oleomarga- 

 rine for butter. Mr. Frank Seither, the president and manager of the 

 company, said to me, " Under no circumstances defend for us a man 

 who is selling oleomargarine for butter. I don't want it; I won't have 

 it. I will contribute to a fund to prosecute them if they do it. I am 

 making a product that I want to go on the market for what it is." And 

 that has been my experience with all the factories. 



However, I have been employed by retailers to defend oleo for butter 

 cases, among them one of the big Cincinnati firms who have some twenty- 

 five or thirty stores over the city. They handle all kinds of groceries. 

 They advertise oleomargarine. They have been accused of violating 

 the laws. The same question was brought to my attention, "What 

 will we do? Somebody comes in and wants oleomargarine, but he does 

 not want to parade the fact on account of the sentiment which has been 

 created against it. He does not want to parade the fact before the public, 

 before people who are standing by. I know that is my customer. I know 

 that is what he or she wants. What am I to do ?" I made it a rule that 

 in every case the clerk was to ask something to the effect, "Do you want 

 oleo?" "It is oleo you want?" " It is butterine you want?" I instructed 

 them to say it so that there could be no question about it. And my 

 experience was that ordinarily the reply was "Yes." And my experi- 

 ence was also to the effect that when the question was asked and no 

 reply given by a customer, who proved to be a detective, that the jury 

 found my client guilty so strong is the feeling that oleo should be sold 

 for what it is. It is even harder to defend under oleo for butter laws 

 than it is to prosecute under the color laws. 



(Thereupon, at 5 o'clock p. m., the committee adjourned until Tuesday 

 January 8, 1901, at 10.30 o'clock a. m.) 



WASHINGTON, D. C., Tuesday, January 8, 1901. 



The committee met at 10.30 a. m. 



Present: Senators Proctor, Hansbrough (acting chairman), Heitfeld, 

 Foster, and Money; also Charles Y. Knight, secretary of the National 

 Dairy Union; Frank W. Tillinghast, representing the Vermont Manu- 

 facturing Company, of Providence, R. I.; Charles E. Schell, represent- 

 ing the Ohio Butterine Company, of Cincinnati, Ohio; W. E. Miller, 

 representing the Armour Packing Company of Kansas City, Mo. ; John 

 F. Jelke, representing Messrs. Braun & Fitts, Chicago, 111. ; Henry E. 

 Davis, representing the National Butterine Company, Washington, 

 D. C., and others. 



