78 THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



The professional class consists primarily of veterinar}' in- 

 pectors and laboratory inspectors. The non-professional 

 class is composed of the so-called lay inspectors and admin- 

 istrative or clerical employees. All are required to pass civil 

 service examinations before appointment. 



Certain veterinary inspectors, selected because of their ex- 

 perience and general qualifications, are known as traveling 

 veterinary inspectors. Each is assigned a district in which 

 he makes special inspection of establishments and reports 

 directly to the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry as 

 to whether the law is being properly enforced and the regu- 

 lations are being observed. These visits and reports are 

 helpful in raising the general standards of the administration 

 of the law. 



Upward of three and a quarter millions of dollars is spent 

 annually for federal meat inspection. 



The regulations which have been issued under the author- 

 ity of the meat inspection law seem to be very broad and 

 comprehensive. The original set was prepared by repre- 

 sentatives of the Department of Agriculture in cooperation 

 with a board of seven eminent outside scientists, of which 

 Dr. William H. Welch of Johns Hopkins University was 

 chairman. These have been supplemented and changed 

 from time to time, but the general principles remain the 

 same. 



Perhaps the chief criticism of the federal meat inspection 

 grows out of a misunderstanding as to the limitations under 

 which the officers charged with its administration are re- 

 quired to work. While some form of inspection is main- 

 tained over the entire product of all establishments which 

 sell any of their goods in interestate or foreign commerce, 

 this does not include more than sixt) or sixty-five per cent 

 of the entire output of the country. Thus it is possible 

 that much of the laxity of the state and local inspection is 

 erroneously ascribed to the federal system. 



Effort is being made by federal authorities to secure a 

 higher degree of cooperation with local health officials in 



