No. BOARD OF HARBOR COMMISSIONERS, HAWAII. AUGUST 21, 1919.-Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed. Mr. KALANIANAOLE, from the Committee on the Territories, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany H. R. 7632.] The Committee on the Territories, to whom was referred H. R. 7632, a bill to amend section 2 of an act entitled "An act to ratify, approve, and confirm sections 1, 2, and 3 of an act duly enacted by the Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii, relating to the board of harbor commissioners of the Territory, as herein amended, and amending the laws relating thereto," approved March 28, 1916, having considered the same, report it to the House with the following amendments: Strike out all of section 2 on pages 3 and 4; renumber section 3 as section 2. It is recommended that as amended it do pass. The bill has been recommended by the Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii in a concurrent resolution adopted April 2, 1919. The reason for asking the amendment provided in the bill is to give further power to the board of harbor commissioners of the Territory of Hawaii and to authorize them to make toll or tonnage charges on freight passing over or across wharves, docks, landings, etc. H R-66-1-vol 2- -7 CONTROL AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD PRODUCTS AND FUEL. AUGUST 21, 1919.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed. Mr. HAUGEN, from the Committee on Agriculture, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany H. R. 8624.] The Committee on Agriculture, to which was referred the bill (H. R. 8624) entitled "An act to amend an act entitled 'An act to provide further for the national security by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel,' approved August 10, 1917," having considered the same, report thereon with a recommendation that it do pass. The bill reported herewith has been considered by the committee. pursuant to the recommendations contained in the President's message on The Cost of Living, the relevant portion of which is as follows: Let me urge, in the first place, that the present food control act should be extended both as to the period of time during which it shall remain in operation and as to the commodities to which it shall apply. Its provisions against hoarding should be made to apply not only to food but also to feed stuffs, to fuel, to clothing, and to many other commodities which are indisputably necessaries of life. As it stands now it is limited in operation to the period of the war and becomes inoperative upon the formal procla mation of peace. But I should judge that it was clearly within the constitutional power of the Congress to make similar permanent provisions and regulations with regard to all goods destined for interstate commerce and to exclude them from interstate shipment if the requirements of the law are not complied with. Some such regulation is imperatively necessary. The abuses that have grown up in the manipulation of prices by the withholding of foodstuffs and other necessaries of life can not otherwise be effectively prevented. There can be no doubt of either the necessity or the legitimacy of such measures. May I not call attention to the fact also that although the present act prohibits profiteering the prohibition is accompanied by no penalty. It is clearly in the public interest that a penalty should be provided which will be persuasive. Pursuant to this recommendation, the Attorney General submitted the following letter and draft: Hon. GILBERT N. HAUGEN, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, House of Representatives. MY DEAR MR. HAUGEN: I beg to inclose herewith draft of an act to amend the food-control act so as to enlarge the definition of "necessaries" and to provide a penalty for the unlawful acts described in section 4 thereof. The only changes in existing law made by this draft are the addition of the words italicized. They have the effect of adding "wearing apparel" and "the containers in which foods, feeds, and fertilizers are sold" to the list of articles described in the act as "necessaries." The only other amendment is indicated on page 3, where a penalty is added to section 4 of the food-control act. It will be extremely helpful in our effort to reduce the high cost of living if these amendments to the food-control act can be promptly passed. Yours, truly, A. MITCHELL PALMER, Attorney General. AN ACT To amend an act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel,' approved August 10, 1917. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the first paragraph of the act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917, be, and the same is hereby, amended so as to read as fol lows: "That by reason of the existence of a state of war it is essential to the national security and defense, for the successful prosecution of the war, and for the support and maintenance of the Army and Navy, to assure an adequate supply and equitable distribution, and to facilitate the movement of foods, feeds, wearing apparel, the containers in which foods, feeds, and fertilizers are sold, fuel, including fuel oil and natural gas, and fertilizer and fertilizer ingredients, tools, utensils, implements, machinery, and equipment required for the actual production of foods, feeds, and fuel, hereafter in this act called necessaries; to prevent, locally or generally, scarcity, monopolization, hoarding, injurious speculation, manipulation, and private controls affecting such supply, distribution, and movement; and to establish and maintain governmental control of such necessaries during the war. For such purpose the instrumentalities, means, methods, powers, authorities, duties, obligations, and prohibitions hereinafter set forth are created, established, conferred, and prescribed. The President is authorized to make such regulations and to issue such orders as are essential effectively to carry out the provisions of this act." SEC. 2. That section 4 of the act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917, be, and the same is hereby, amended so as to read as follows: "That it is hereby made unlawful for any person willfully to destroy any necessaries for the purpose of enhancing the price or restricting the supply thereof; knowingly to commit waste or willfully to permit preventable deterioration of any necessaries in or in connection with their production, manufacture, or distribution; to hoard, as defined in section 6 of this act, any necessaries; to monopolize or attempt to monopolize, either locally or generally, any necessaries; to engage in any discriminatory and unfair, or any deceptive or wasteful practice or device, or to make any unjust or unreasonable rate or charge, in handling or dealing in or with any necessaries; to conspire, combine, agree, or arrange with any other person, (a) to limit the facilities for transporting, producing, harvesting, manufacturing, supplying, storing, or dealing in any necessaries; (b) to restrict the supply of any necessaries; (c) to restrict distribution of any necessaries; (d) to prevent, limit, or lessen the manufacture or production of any necessaries in order to enhance the price thereof; or (e) to exact excessive prices for any necessaries; or to aid or abet the doing of any act made unlawful by this section. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding $5,000 or be imprisoned for not more than two years, or both. The bill reported herewith is as follows: [H. R. 8624, Sixty-sixth Congress, first session.] AN ACT To amend an act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the first paragraph of the act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917, be, and the same is hereby, amended so as to read as follows: "That by reason of the existence of a state of war, it is essential to the national security and defense, for the successful prosecution of the war and for the support and maintenance of the Army and Navy, to assure an adequate supply and equitable distribution, and to facilitate the movement of foods, feeds, wearing apparel, containers primarily designed or intended for containing foods, feeds, or fertilizers, fuel, including fuel oil and natural gas, and fertilizer and fertilizer ingredients, tools, utensils, implements, machinery, and equipment required for the actual production of foods, feeds, and fuel, hereafter in this act called necessaries; to prevent, locally or generally, scarcity, monopolization, hoarding, injurious speculation, manipulation, and private controls affecting such supply, distribution, and movement; and to establish and maintain governmental control of such necessaries during the war. For such purposes the instrumentalities, means, methods, powers, authorities, duties, obligations, and prohibitions hereinafter set forth are created, established, conferred, and prescribed. The President is authorized to make such regulations and to issue such orders as are essential effectively to carry out the provisions of this act. SEC. 2. That section 4 of the act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917, be, and the same is hereby, amended so as to read as follows: "That it is hereby made unlawful for any person willfully to destroy any necessaries for the purpose of enhancing the price or restricting the supply thereof; knowingly to commit waste or willfully to permit preventable deterioration of any necessaries in or in connection with their production, manufacture, or distribution; to hoard, as defined in section 6 of this act, any necessaries; to monopolize or attempt to monopolize, either locally or generally, any necessaries; to engage in any discriminatory and unfair, or any deceptive or wasteful practice or device, or to make any unjust or unreasonable rate or charge in handling or dealing in or with any necessaries; to conspire, combine, agree, or arrange with any other person, (a) to limit the facilities for transporting, producing, harvesting, manufacturing, supplying, storing, or dealing in any necessaries; (b) to restrict the supply of any necessaries; (c) to restrict distribution of any necessaries; (d) to prevent, limit, or lessen the manufacture or production of any necessaries in order to enhance the price thereof; or (e) to exact excessive prices for any necessaries, or to aid or abet the doing of any act made unlawful by this section. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section upon conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding $5,000 or be imprisoned for not more than two years, or both: Provided, That this section shall not apply to any farmer, gardener, horticulturist, vineyardist, planter, ranchman, dairyman, stockman, or other agriculturist, with respect to the farm products produced or raised upon land owned, leased, or cultivated by him: And provided further, That nothing in this act shall be construed to forbid or make unlawful collective bargaining by any cooperative association or other association of farmers, dairymen, gardeners, or other producers of farm products with respect to the farm products produced or raised by its members upon land owned, leased, or cultivated by them." SEC. 3. That sections 8 and 9 of the act entitled "An act to provide further for the national security and defense by encouraging the production, conserving the supply, and controlling the distribution of food products and fuel," approved August 10, 1917, be, and the same are hereby repealed: Provided, That any offense committed in violation of said sections 8 and 9, prior to the passage of this act, may be prosecuted and the penalties prescribed therein enforced in the same manner and with the same effect as if this act had not been passed. The bill reported herewith is identical with the recommendations of the Attorney General, except in the following respects: In section 1, which enlarges the definition of "necessaries," the Attorney General included the words "wearing apparel, the containers in which foods, feeds, and fertilizers are sold." The bill |