OCR Text |
Show POPULAR TALKS ON LAW THE DANGERS OF BAD PIE By Walter K. Towore, A. B.,J. D., of tho Michigan Bar. nosolvod, That It was not more dall gorous ror Caesar to establish electric funs In the basement under tho Campus Martlus than it is Tor us to cat pic. $uch Is tho favorlto question ror college clobato. It Is an ovldonco or some or tho fun that Is poked at plo. But pie Is u national rood, and as sucn mo securing or wholcBomo plo Is a part or the question or securing puro rood. Not long ago tho question or pure plo and the legal responsibilities or tho producer pro-ducer or poor plo became especially Important Im-portant to tho Massachusetts man named Wilson. Tho WllBons purchasod a bluc-bol'ry bluc-bol'ry plo from tho rotail dealer, and partaking par-taking thereof became very 111. Wilson surforotl long from alt attack or ptomaino poisoning- caused by eating the tie. Ho sued the manuractilrcr Of the tile and recovered damages. Tho pto nlorcllaill carried tho cases to the Supremo Court, only to bo beaten again. The court had tho rollowing, In part, to say: "It (the plo company) represented by advertisement that It was engaged In making and selling pies which were not only wholesome but or excellent quality. Apart from any expectation or pecuniary gain or apprehension or loss, It was bound In their preparation to take every reasonable reason-able precaution to supply an article or rood which would not bo deleterious to the consumer's health. Tho pie having' been unwholesome, and the dealer free Trom blame, tho question Is, whether there IS cvidonco from which It could have been round that the plaintiff's injuries wore attributable to tho defendant's nogllgoncc. The selection of tho berries, the manner or assorting and preparing them Tor use, and tho largo volumo or business transacted trans-acted ojo doscrlbed In detail by tho do-rondant's do-rondant's witness. Tho cvidonco, how-ovor, how-ovor, noed not bo minutely reviewed. Its ossontial foaturos only aro important. It seems that a well-dorined period or do-mand do-mand Tor blueberry pies or tho defendant's defend-ant's brand had boon established in tho trade, Tor which it proparod by buying and keeping on hand largo quantities or borrlos. But as they wore not all usod whon tho public appotlto slackened or ceased, tho unused portion ror olght or nine months, or until tho succeeding season, sea-son, was thoroupon stored In whlskoy bar-rols, bar-rols, whoro tho extent and rorco or tho fermentation caused tho heans to burst. Tho Jurors rrom common oxporlcnco could have Inrorrcd without dirriculty that the fruit as a result or tho process had be-como be-como moroly a mass or pulp thoroughly unNt Tor culinary purposos, and ir usod It might bo highly injurious, or dangerous. Tho decomposition, moreover, according to modlcal testimony, had developed dlfforont toxins and poisons, making tho borrlos noxious. IT, to neutralize or ovorcomo thes0 proportlos, .the dorondant, with knowlodgo or tho qualltlos or tho ingrodlcnts, mlxod rrosh borrlos with tho product or tho bar-rols, bar-rols, novortholcss tho ract romaincd that tho plos consisted in part or rormontod or decayod fruit. It thoroToro could not have boon ruled as mattor or law that tho agoncy or rrosh borrlos had countor-actod countor-actod tho poisons and caused tho compound com-pound to bo hoalthrul, and tho Jury, as tho Judgos correctly hold, woro to detor-mino detor-mino whothor the plo tho plalntirr bought and ato had boon proporly proparod." Thus wo notlco that tho manuracturer or plo who advortlsos that ho produces I puro rood owes to his consumer a duty to make wholosomo plo, and ir ho docj not do so, and injury rosults to tho person per-son who buys and oals tho plo, tho producer pro-ducer may bo required to pay the dam-r.gos, dam-r.gos, but to doalers in rood or every variety and description. Tho purity or ovor'thing that is eaton by humans is or the most I vital Interest and so comes within tho safeguard of tho law. Ono who sells food at rotail knows that ho is selling it ror consumption, and he is understood as giving assuranco to nis customers that tho article which ho sells is rit ror human rood, ir it Is not In a condition proper Tor human consumption, anct ho knew or It, or should have Known it, lie will bo hold responsible to tho person per-son who purchases tho rood and surrers loss because or Its lack or purity. One may also advcrtiso his products as ncing puro, ns did the plo manuracturcp in the above case, and ho will bo bound by what ho states In his advertisement 10 tho public. Ono may hold hlmseir out to tho public as a provider or proper rood, as dors a caterer who places hlmseir bororo tho public as ono skilled in providing and preparing1 food for entertainments and similar occasions. In a Massacnusotts tcse a public caterer was cngagoa by persons giving an entertainment to servo food and drink, and a person who attended at-tended the entertainment was lnjurod be-causo be-causo or impurities In the rood. Tho person per-son Injured sued tho caterer and was allowed al-lowed to recover. Not only docs tho law provide redress ror the person who Is Injured because or Impure rood, but the national and state govornmonts have enacted legislation with n view or preventing tho salo or Improper rood. It Is now generally understood that It Is one or tho proper runctlons or government gov-ernment to guard the rood supply or Its citizens. The power or tho govornmont oxtends to providing Tor Inspection or rood by public orriclals. Food supplies may bo inspoctod at the place they aro producod, and ir unrit, salo may bo provontod, or thoy may even be condemned and do-stroyed. do-stroyed. Both the United States government govern-ment and a mojorlty or the states provldo ror rigid Inspection or many classes or roods and give to their inspectors a wldo authority In preventing tho salo or rood not up to tho proper standard. Regulation or rood not only extends to preventing the preparation and salo or Impure rood, but also In protecting tho public against imitations and adulterants, which may bo perrectly harmless. Tho salo or Imitations, as oleomargarlno, may ho regulated by tho government, with a vlow or protecting tho public against Imposition. Im-position. Tho salo or a harmless substitute substi-tute ror a standard article may bo mado lawrul, but tho requirement may bo added that by coloration, label, or other dovlco tho public may bo Informed as to tho oxact nature or tho product. Tho laws which havo vory generally boon onactod against tho salo or oleomargarine oleo-margarine colored so that It is an oxact countorreit or butter, havo given rise to much bitter litigation. In states such as Vermont, whoro tho butter producers aro in tho ascendancy, somo vory stringent laws havo boon passed. Ono state onactod a law requiring that all oleomargarine bo colorod pink. This was doroatod in the courts, It being held that tho only proper purposo or legislation rogulatlng tho preparation prep-aration or rood was to protoct tho public against Impurities, and that requiring a puro and wholesome article bo colorod In a ridiculous mannor that would In or-rect or-rect prevent its use as rood was not proper. prop-er. But the laws which now exist In ..iany stated Torblddlng tho salo or oleomargarlno oleomargar-lno colored at all have neon upheld, and this though in the same Jurisdictions tho salo or artirielaTiy colored butter is al-lowod. al-lowod. So when the legislature enacts that colored oleomargarine may not bo sold or orrercd Tor sale, Its decision In tho mattor is rinal. (Copyright, 1013, by Walter K. Towors). |