REPORT OF THE SOLICITOR.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,

OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR, Washington, D. C., October 19, 1911.

SIR: I submit herewith the report of the work of the Office of the Solicitor for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1911.

Very respectfully,

Hon. JAMES WILSON,

Secretary of Agriculture.

GEO. P. MCCABE,

Solicitor.

OUTLINE OF OFFICE WORK.

The greatest activity of this office since its creation in 1905 marked the period covered by this report. The necessary administrative machinery is now in working order to carry out the several regulative acts of Congress enacted in the past few years and intrusted to the Secretary of Agriculture for enforcement. Among these are the food and drugs act, the meat-inspection law, the acts for protection of the National Forests, the twenty-eight hour law, the live-stock quarantine act, the insecticide act, and the Lacey Act. The extent of the authority of administrative officers under these statutes, technical questions of procedure and practice in the trial of actual cases arising under these laws, and the correct interpretation of the more important provisions of the statutes have now, with a few exceptions, been pretty well settled by the courts. As a result, the work of this office has increased propo. tionately as the duties of administrative officers, inspectors, and other agents have become more sharply defined and better understood. The normal expansion along existing lines of activity in other branches of the department has also added greatly to the work of this office. The placing of the legal business of the Forest Service under my immediate direction has resulted in still further increasing the duties of the office and in greatly enlarging their scope.

The food and drugs act has been enforced vigorously and effectively during the year by the department and by the United States attorneys. There were prepared and reported to the Department of Justice 1,162 violations of the law, a larger number than in any one year previous and approximately 40 per cent of the number reported in the four and one-half years the act has been in effect. Of the whole number, 825 were criminal cases and 337 were recommendations for the seizure of adulterated or misbranded foods and drugs. There were 684 cases prosecuted by the United States attorneys during the

year, a marked increase over the number of cases presented in any one year previous, the number representing about 50 per cent of the cases brought to judgment up to June 30, 1911. In addition some 250 minor violations of the law, involving questions of labeling only, were corrected without recourse to the courts. In that class of offenses shippers voluntarily reformed their labels immediately on notice by the Solicitor of the exceptions taken by the Bureau of Chemistry to the branding.

Of the criminal cases prosecuted during the year, 386 resulted in convictions. As in previous years, defendants pleaded guilty in by far the greater number of these cases. Eleven of the criminal cases were decided adversely to the Government. Fines were imposed in the criminal cases amounting to about $16,000, and, in addition, costs were generally assessed against the defendants. Of the cases reported during the year, 219 were pending in the courts at its close, and 351 reported late in the year were under consideration by the Department of Justice.

In the seizure cases decrees of condemnation and forfeiture were entered against 277 shipments of adulterated and misbranded foods and drugs. As heretofore, whenever seized articles of food were found to consist of filthy, decomposed, or putrid substances, or to contain added poisonous or deleterious ingredients which might render them injurious to health, the department has insisted that orders be entered directing the destruction of the goods. One hundred and fifty shipments of this class were destroyed. On the other hand, in the class of cases where the adulteration or misbranding was such that it could be cured by relabeling, the courts have usually released seized goods to claimants after relabeling whenever claimants have appeared and consented to the entry of decrees of condemnation and forfeiture, paid the costs of the proceedings, and filed bonds, as provided for by section 10 of the act, that the goods would not thereafter be sold or otherwise disposed of contrary to law. One hundred and twentyseven shipments of this class were released during the year after relabeling and the providing of satisfactory bonds. There have been seized and destroyed large quantities of tomato catsup, tomato pulp, tomato paste, frozen and desiccated eggs, and black olives, found to be adulterated because they consisted in part of filthy, decomposed, or putrid substances. Several shipments of ice-cream cones containing boric acid have also been condemned and destroyed. The practice has been continued of reporting cases for criminal prosecution based on shipments of seized goods found to consist of filthy, decomposed, or putrid substances, or to contain added poisonous or deleterious ingredients which may render them injurious to health, and criminal prosecutions have been maintained successfully against shippers of such articles. More than 60 shipments of vinegars have been seized on the ground, for example, that they were represented on their labels as cider or apple vinegars, when they were found on analysis to contain dilute solutions of acetic acid and to be artificially colored. Shipments of this class have usually been released by the courts to claimants after the entry of decrees of condemnation and forfeiture and relabeling. Twenty-four seizure cases were discontinued, because evidence was not forthcoming on which to maintain them. In 12 cases seizures were abandoned because the goods had been disposed of prior to the filing of libels. Fifty-nine seizures made during the year were pending in the courts at its close.

Notices of judgment in the terminated cases have been prepared by this office promptly on receipt of the necessary records from the United States attorneys. Four hundred and forty-two of such notices were published during the year and over 200 more were in course of publication at the close of the year. Notices of judgment have been issued in the cases decided adversely as well as favorably to the Government. Advance copies of these notices have been forwarded to the officials of the several States authorized to cooperate with the department in the enforcement of the law. These notices serve a double purpose. They are en important factor in deterring the parties interested in particular notices from further violations of the law, and they inform the officials engaged in the administration of the food and drug laws as well as manufacturers and producers of foods and drugs generally of the interpretation placed by the department and by the courts on the provisions of the law defining adulteration and misbranding.

The office reported 598 instances of apparent violations of the twenty-eight hour law (act of June 29, 1906; 34 Stat., 607) in the fiscal year 1911, as compared with 438 cases similarly reported in 1910. Penalties aggregating $26,075 were recovered and costs in the sum of $5,783.85 were paid in 1911; in 1910 penalties in the sum of $16,500 and costs in the sum of $2,919.35 were assessed. Three hundred and fifty cases were disposed of in 1911, as compared with 187 cases disposed of in 1910. In 1911, 30 cases out of 284 resulted adversely to the United States; in 1910, 19 cases out of 158 terminated in favor of the defendants. Five hundred and fifty-nine cases were pending under this statute at the close of June 30, 1910, and 807 cases were pending at the close of June 30, 1911.

One hundred apparent violations of the live-stock quarantine acts were reported to the Attorney General during 1911, as compared with 148 cases during 1910. Of these, 90 were apparent violations of the act of March 3, 1905 (33 Stat., 1264), and 10 were alleged violations of the act of May 29, 1884 (23 Stat., 31). In all, penalties amounting to $5,580 were imposed in the 51 violations of these statutes disposed of during 1911, as compared with fines amounting to $2,970 in the 24 cases disposed of under the same statutes during 1910.

One hundred and one violations of the meat-inspection amendment (act of June 30, 1906; 34 Stat., 674) were reported to the Attorney General in 1911, as compared with 52 similar cases reported in 1910. Forty-three cases terminated in favor of the United States in 1911, fines or sentences of imprisonment being imposed; fines were assessed in the sum of $3,240; 18 cases terminated in favor of the United States in 1910, and fines were assessed in the aggregate of $2,397. In 1911, in 1 case there was a verdict for the defendant, 8 cases were dismissed, in 4 cases no true bills were found, and in 3 cases sentence was suspended; there were 74 cases pending under this statute at the close of June 30, 1911. In 1910, no cases were lost, 8 were dismissed for lack of evidence, and 26 were pending at the close of June 30, 1910.

The appropriation for the enforcement of the insecticide act of 1910 (act of April 26, 1910; 36 Stat., 331) became available March 4, 1911, (36 Stat., 1264). Several opinions have been rendered by the Solicitor on the construction of important sections of the statute, guaranties filed under section 9 are being examined, and the necessary legal work preliminary to the preparation of cases under the act is being performed.

The legal work of the Forest Service was placed under my immediate direction on January 15, 1910, and the report of this office for the fiscal year 1910 included a statement of the legal business transacted on behalf of that service from January 15, 1910, to June 30, 1910. Where reference is made in the present report to the legal work for the Forest Service transacted in the fiscal year 1910 this fact should be borne in mind.

During the fiscal year 1911 the Solicitor rendered 56 written opinions to officers of the Forest Service on the legal phases of questions arising in connection with the administration of the national forests; during the fiscal year 1910, 51 written opinions were similarly rendered. Four hundred and twenty-three agreements and 196 leases were prepared, and the sufficiency of the execution of the same examined during 1911, as compared with 53 agreements and 150 leases prepared during the fiscal year 1910. Two hundred and seven bonds were prepared in 1911, as compared with 47 in 1910. Two thousand three hundred and thirty-one cases involving contested claims to lands within the National Forests were handled during the fiscal year 1911, as compared with 565 cases of contested claims to lands within the National Forests disposed of during 1910. The regulations regarding the occupancy of lands in National Forests, in connection with the generation of hydroelectric power, were issued on December 29, 1910, as the result of conferences with the officials of the Forest Service, and on March 18, 1911, the regulations governing the subject of grazing on the National Forests were likewise promulgated. The regulations regarding special uses of lands in National Forests were similarly issued on March 18, 1911, and the portions of the National Forest code regarding trespass and timber sales were completed, though not issued at the close of the fiscal year 1911. Those portions of the code regarding settlement and claims were practically completed at the close of 1911. These regulations constitute a very complete code of rules governing the use and administration of the National Forests in every particular. Twenty-four cases were reported to the Attorney General for criminal prosecution and 12 actions for injunction as a result of grazing trespasses during 1911. Of the criminal cases, 11 resulted in convictions, $800 in fines being imposed. Injunctions were granted in 8 of the 12 cases. In 86 cases an administrative settlement was effected, it being apparent that the trespasses were committed without criminal intent or knowledge. Remittances in the sum of $2,000.04 have been received in 55 cases; the remaining cases will be settled during the present fiscal year. Thirty-five trespass cases were reported with a view to the collection of exemplary damages, recoveries being had in 13 cases in the sum of $2,094.57 actual damages and $817 exemplary damages. Outstanding judgments amount to $317.50.

Nine hundred and fifty-eight agreements, 224 bonds, and 1 deed were prepared in 1911, as compared with 559 agreements and 87 bonds prepared in 1910.

Nine applications for letters patent on inventions of employees of the department for dedication to the public were filed in 1910, and a like number was presented in 1911. Of pending cases, 10 patents were allowed in 1911, as compared with 5 patents allowed and 1 disallowed in 1910.

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The foregoing summary of the legal business transacted by this office on behalf of the department, while giving as much as can be expressed statistically, does not convey an adequate idea of the volume or character of the work actually done. An examination of the reports of the various United States attorneys will show that the legal business of this department has increased in volume and importance to a very marked degree during the fiscal year 1911. This, of course, does not take into account the legal business of the department which is not ultimately referred to the United States attorneys. I desire to make it a matter of record that the prompt and, I believe, efficient transaction of the legal business of the department has been effected through the devotion of the clerical force of this office. The work is current and as nearly up to date as conditions will permit.

It should be noted that in the following report no reference is made to any prosecution in tabular form, nor is the name of any defendant stated unless an indictment has been returned or an information filed in the case. The only reference to such cases is in the general summary, where a statement is made of the number of cases transmitted to the Attorney General for appropriate action during the fiscal year covered by the report.

ADMINISTRATION OF ACTS OF CONGRESS.

THE FOOD AND DRUGS ACT.

The new method of handling reports of food and drug cases, prescribed by General Order No. 140, effective July 1, 1910, has produced good results. This is evidenced from the increased number of cases reported and prosecuted during the year. Under the practice outlined by the order, complete reports have reached the hands of the prosecuting officers of the Government within a brief time after the violations have been committed. The cases have been handled promptly, and objections formerly raised to proceeding with the cases on account of the staleness of the offenses have been practically negligible. Full cooperation has existed between the Department of Justice and this department during the year. Several briefs have been written by the Solicitor at the request of the Attorney General and the United States attorneys, and frequent correspondence in legal questions presented in pending cases has contributed, it is believed, to the effective enforcement of the law.

In accordance with General Order 140, the Solicitor has examined the evidence of violations of the law reported by the Bureau of Chemistry to determine whether prima facie cases are presented and make recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture whether citations should issue, and, after hearings had been held, whether cases should be reported to the Department of Justice. In making these recommendations the findings of fact by the Bureau of Chemistry have been accepted, and all the evidence available has been considered to determine whether violations of the law have been committed such as to warrant prosecution. No leniency has been shown in any case based on foods alleged by the Bureau of Chemistry to contain added poisonous or deleterious ingredients which might render them injurious to health. Regard has been had to the declaration of the Committee on