name of manufacturer, the place of manufacture, etc., which are not in harmony with the general meaning of the law may be used if on hand on the 1st of January, 1907, the day on which the regulations become effective. Any statement, however, respecting the character of the contents which is false or misleading should be corrected as indicated. The correction should secure the obliteration of the misstatement either by placing the supplemental label or paster over it or obliterating it in some other way. If the goods contain artificial color or preservative other than ordinary condimental substances (salt, sugar, vinegar, wood smoke, spices, and condiments of all kinds), that fact should appear upon the supplemental stamp or paster. If any of the words required to be placed upon drugs and foods in the specific wording of the act do not appear upon the label, such as alcohol, opium, etc., it is held that the correction must include the enumeration of these substances, as provided for in Regulations 28 and 29.
If goods that are packed and sealed in a carton which contains the bottle or other package also sealed and labeled were not in the hands of the manufacturer after January 1, 1907, but had been already delivered to the jobber or dealer, it will be held sufficient to mark the external carton alone, provided the goods are sold only in the unbroken carton. If the container, however, holds a large number of separate packages, it will be necessary that each of the separate packages to be sold as such shall be labeled with the words required specifically by the act.
It must not be forgotten that Regulation 17, section (i), is for the purpose of avoiding the expense of relabeling articles already packed and branded at the time the regulations go into effect and which necessarily could not have been so packed and branded with any intent to evade the provisions of the law, and it is expected that jobbers and dealers will do everything in their power to bring the packages now on hand into as close harmony with the provisions of the act and the regulations made thereunder as possible.
All articles in the hands of manufacturers, jobbers, and dealers on the 1st day of January, 1907, which are sold wholly within the State in which they are found on that date are exempt from the provisions of the act. Thus the use of the supplemental label, stamp, or paster is required only on those articles which on or after the 1st day of January, 1907, enter interstate commerce or are offered for sale in the District of Columbia and the Territories. It is believed that the provisions of Regulation 17, section (i), can be complied with without great annoyance and expense. It will be deemed sufficient if the supplemental pasters and labels are attached at the time the goods are shipped beyond the State line, that is, they need not necessarily be attached to such article on the 1st day of January, but at any time thereafter when prepared for interstate commerce. Thus the labor of meeting this requirement will be distributed according to the exigencies of actual trade. On and after October 1, 1907, the label must be originally properly printed, and no further amendment will be considered.
Approved:
W. M. Hays,
Acting Secretary.
Washington, D. C., November 6, 1906.
