Page:United States Reports, Volume 209.djvu/513

 09 U. 8. Opinion of tim Corot. The suit is brought against appellee, described as a eitin of Michigan, by appellants, described as citizens of Illinois. It is true it is alleged that appellee is the state dairy an!i food commissioner of Michigan, and that by an act of the Jgeneral assembly of the State, passed the second of June, 1893,. the office of dairy and food commissioner was created, and that it was by such act and amendatory acts made the duty of appela lee as commisoner "to attend to the enforcement of all the laws of the State of Michigan against the unlawful labeling, fraud, adulteration or impurity of foods, sold, offered for sale, exposed for sale or had in ixsession with intent to sell in the State of Michigan," and that it is the duty of the commissioner is clearly set forth in the acts. It is alleged that it is his duy to prosecute violaters of the act. That it came to the notice of the appellants that the ap- pellee questioned the legality of some of the food products manufactured by them and sold in Michigan, and that they represented, through their attorney, that they were manufac- turers of certain bands of maple and cae syrups which they were desirous of having properly labeled, that appellee refused to accept the statement of the attorney as being made in good faith, and stated that none of the syrups manufactured by appellants contained any maple syrup whatever but were mixtures of inferior syrups containing substances which pro- duced "imitation maple flavors," and accused appellants of not being desirous of 'obtaining a wise and just interpretation of the food'laws of the State of Michigan," and refused to give appellants' attorney "any information as to how a brand of maple syrup and cane syrup should be properly and legall labeled under said food laws" and refused to consider how such syrups should be labeled, and insisted that he would only per- reit appellants' syrups "to be sold simply as 'syrup,' without any qualifying words whatever to inform purchasers of the same of the nature of such syrups." The bill sets forth efforts made by appellants to have the question of the legal labeling of their products decided by the Assistant Attorney General of the Statem

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