OLEOMAKGABIKE. 641 



the law of another State, from which that had been very closely copied, 

 had been held to be constitutional. The third judge gave us the best 

 decision we have had in its support. But we dropped that law entirely 

 at that time because we could hold no one under it, for the reason that 

 anybody seized would be released immediately under habeas corpus 

 proceedings upon the ground that the law was unconstitutional. So, 

 in this situation I thought of the old branding laws which were dis- 

 carded as useless years ago, and we had found them useless for the 

 purpose at that time. I thought of those old laws and I concluded to 

 try some prosecutions under them, because they had not been declared 

 unconstitutional, and we did not think that the manufacturers would 

 dare to come up and defend a man for selling oleomargarine as butter. 

 Here is the letter which our attorneys sent out to the manufacturers, 

 telling them what we were going to do : 



OFFICE OF H. V. MURRAY, ATTORNEY AT LAW, 



Chicago, HI., July 29, 1899. 



DEAR SIR: I have been employed by the Illinois Dairy Union to prosecute any 

 cases of violation of the dairy laws of this State which may result from the arrest 

 of any dealer selling oleomargarine when butter is called for. As you probably 

 know, a commission, consisting of a food commissioner and eight assistants and 

 inspectors, was provided for by the late legislature, whose duty it is to enforce these 

 laws. The commissioner has been appointed, and until he has appointed his assist- 

 ants and gotten to work the Illinois Dairy Union's inspectors will look after the 

 protection of consumers of butter, and see that those who sell them oleomargarine 

 for butter are prosecuted under the State laws and also reported to the Internal 

 Revenue Department as violators of the internal-revenue laws. I herewith inclose 

 extracts from three State laws. These laws are not tied up in the courts, and the 

 oleomargarine manufacturers will not place themselves in the light of protecting 

 those who sell oleomargarine for butter, although they may consistently fight the 

 law forbidding coloring, which has not yet been passed upon by the supreme court. 

 If you sell oleomargarine this year, rest assured that the State food commissioner 

 and the Illinois Dairy Union will see that you are not permitted to sell it as butter. 

 Respectfully, yours, 



HUGH V. MURRAY, 

 Attorney for Illinois Dairy Union. 



Now, that is the letter that we sent out threatening to prosecute 

 them under the State law for selling oleomargarine as butter. Within 

 four days after that letter was sent out came an answer signed by 

 William J. Moxley, and dated on August 2, which is as follows: 



[William J. Moxley, manufacturer of fine butterine, 63 and 65 West Monroe street.] 



CHICAGO, August 2, 1899. 



, City. 



DEAR SIR : Our attention has been called to two circulars which have been mailed 

 to you, one signed by Hugh V. Murray, an attorney, and the other by Charles Y. 

 Knight, editor in chief of a periodical without subscribers, named the Chicago 

 Dairy Produce. 



I will say that my circular was simply a copy of the laws that I pro- 

 posed to act under. I did not put it in there because it would make 

 four or five pages and I did not want to take up so much space. 



The circular bearing Mr. Knight's name has at its head an imposing lot of names, 

 gentlemen whose aim it is to prevent the manufacture and sale of butterine, so that 

 the butter trust might be enabled to get from 30 to 40 cents a pound for butter, 

 depriving as they would a great many of the industrial classes from being able to 

 use butter through its excessive price. 



That is to say, people could not use butter, they could not afford to 

 use butter, if there was no butterine. 



With the hired attorney, who is earning his fee, we have nothing to say, only to 

 inform you that these gentlemen are trying to ring in a bluff. You will notice in 



Rep. 2043 41 (*59) 



