e Pure Food law did
three things: it prohibited the sale of foods or drugs which were not
pure and unadulterated; it prohibited the sale of drugs which contained
opium, cocaine, alcohol, and other narcotics unless the exact proportion
of them in the preparation were stated on the package; and it prohibited
the sale of foods and drugs as anything else than what they actually
were. The Meat Inspection law required rigid inspection by Government
officials of all slaughterhouses and packing concerns preparing meat
food products for distribution in interstate commerce. The imperative
need for the passage of this law was brought forcibly and vividly to
the popular attention through a novel, "The Jungle", written by Upton
Sinclair, in which the disgraceful conditions of uncleanliness and
revolting carelessness in the Chicago packing houses were described with
vitriolic intensity. An official investigation ordered by the President
confirmed the truth of these timely revelations.

These achievements on the part of the Roosevelt Administrations were of
high value. But, after all Roosevelt performed an even greater service
in arousing the public mind to a realization of facts of national
significance and stimulating the public conscience to a desire to
deal with them vigorously and justly. From the very beginning of his
Presidential career he realized the gravity of the problems created by
the rise of big business; and he began forthwith to impress upon the
people with hammer blows the conditions as he saw them, the need
for definite corrective action, and the absolute necessity for such
treatment of the case as would constitute the "square deal." An
interesting example of his method and of the response which it received
is to be found in the report of an address which he made in 1907. It
runs thus:

"From the standpoint of our material prosperity there is only one
other thing as important as the discouragement of a spirit of envy and
hostility toward business men, toward honest men of means; this is the
discouragement of dishonest business men. [Great applause.]

"Wait a moment; I don't want you to applaud this part unless you are
willing to applaud also the part I read first, to which you listened in
silence. [Laughter and applause.] I want you to understand that I will
stand just as straight for the rights of the honest man who wins his
fortune by honest methods as I will stand against the dishonest man who
wins a fortune by