53 
Designation of Substations and Trial Stations. 
The following report of the committee od designation of substations and trial 
stations was read by W. 31. Hays, of Minnesota chairman): 
Your committee respectfully reports that none of the suggestions pending at the 
time of the report a year ago seem worthy of recommendation. We would therefore 
respectfully recommend that the report as adopted a year ago stand and that the 
committee be discharged. 
W. M. Hays, 
W. .1. Spellman, 
Com in ill. I . 
The report was accepted and the committee discharged. 
Pure Food Legislation. 
The following report of the committee on pure food legislation was read by W. A. 
Withers, of North Carolina | chairman) : 
Your committee upon pure food legislation wishes to report that much progress 
has been made during the year toward the securing of purer food products for the 
American people. 
Two States have been added to the list of those which have established bureaus 
for the control of food products, and the importance of the subject has been felt in 
other States in which legislation has been proposed but not yet enacted. 
The most important legislation of the year, however, is embraced in the following 
excerpt from the act making appropriations for the Department of Agriculture 
(Public— No. 158), approved March 3, 1903: 
"To investigate the adulteration of foods, drugs, and liquors, when deemed by the 
Secretary of Agriculture advisable; and the Secretary of Agriculture, whenever he 
has reason to believe that articles are being imported from foreign countries which 
by reason of such adulteration are dangerous to the health of the people of the United 
States, or which are forbidden to be Bold or restricted in sale in thecountries in which 
they are made or from which they are exported, or which shall be falsely labeled in 
any respect in regard to the place of manufacture or the contents of the package, shall 
make a request upon the Secretary of the Treasury for samples from original pack- 
ages of such articles for inspection and analysis; and the Secretary of the Treasury 
is hereby authorized to open such original packages and deliver specimens to the 
Secretary of Agriculture for the purpose mentioned, giving notice to the owner or 
consignee of such articles, who maybe present and have the right to introduce testi- 
mony; and the Secretary of the Treasury shall refuse delivery to the consignee of any 
such goods which the Secretary of Agriculture reports to him have been inspected 
and analyzed and found to be dangerous to health, or which are forbidden to be sold 
or restricted in sale in the countries in which they are made or from which they are 
exported, or which shall be falsely labeled in any respect in regard to the place of 
manufacture or the contents of the package. 
"To enable the Secretary of Agriculture to investigate the character of food pre- 
servatives, coloring matters, and other substances added to foods, to determine their 
relation to digestion and to health, and to establish the principles which should guide 
their use; to enable the Secretary of Agriculture to investigate the character of the 
chemical and physical tests which are applied to American food products in foreign 
countries, and to inspect before shipment, when desired by. the shippers or owners 
of these food products, American food products intended for countries where chemical 
and physical tests are required before said food products are allowed to be sold in the 
countries mentioned, and for all necessary expenses connected with such inspection 
and studies of methods of analysis in foreign countries; to enable the Secretary of 
Agriculture, in collaboration with the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists, 
and such other experts as he may deem necessary, to establish standards of purity 
for food products and to determine what are regarded as adulterations therein, for 
the guidance of the officials of the various States and of the courts of justice/' 
In conformity with the provisions of this act, the preparation of standards of 
purity for various food products is in progress, investigations relating to the effect 
upon health of added preservative, coloring matter, etc., have began and the inspec- 
tion of imported foods is in active operation. The daily imports are about 200 car- 
goes, 150 of which from their nature are not liable to be adulterated. Of the remain- 
ing 50 cargoes, 10 a day are inspected and about 10 per cent of them are found to be 
improperly labeled or prepared otherwise contrary to law. The Secretary of Agri- 
