CHAPTER 348.
OF STATE CHEMIST.
AN ACT to amend the net entitled An act providing for the appointment of State Chemist.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met:
SECTION 1. That an act providing for the appointment of State Chemist, and other purposes, passed at Dover, March 16, 1871,
be amended by striking out the whole of the first line of Section 5, and also that part of the second line of said Section prior to
the word "dollars," and inclusive of the word "thirty," and inserting the following instead thereof, to wit ; "that every manufacturer or vendor of fertilizers whose annual sales exceed one thousand tons shall pay to the State Chemist for each analysis the sum of forty dollars, and all other manufacturers or vendors of fertilizer shall pay to said State Chemist for each analysis the
sum of thirty dollars:" And be it further enacted that Sections Third and Fourth be amended by striking out the word "July"
in each section and inserting in lieu thereof the word May : And be it further enacted, that the said act be further amended by abiding the following section, to Wit: It shall be the duty of the Levy Court .or a Committee thereof, in each of the counties of this State, to procure from trade packages on sale true samples of all fertilizer sold in this State, and make a record of the same stating the time when secured, the name of the manufacturer or vendor and number, the quantity so taken; and shall affix a number thereto respectively. Said record shall be filed in the office of Clerk of said Court: And be it further enacted that the said Levy Court or a committee thereof shall, on or before the first day of June in each and every year forward such samples to the State Chemist for analysis. But in no case shall they forward the name of the manufacturer or vendor, or in any way make known to said chemist the same. The numbers affixed respectively shall accompany the sample, by which the said chemist shall make his record. The State Chemist shall analyze all samples sent by such Committee carefully, and correctly tabulating the percentage of available phosphoric acid, the percentage of ammonia and of potash contained in such sample, together with a table of the composition values of all such fertilizers, which values are to be determined by estimating the value of the following elements contained in such fertilizer: Of available phosphoric acid at twelve and one half cents 121/2 per pound, of ammonia at twenty-two cents 22 per pound, and of potash at eight cents 8 per pound. And be it further enacted that the State Chemist shall on or before the first day of July in each and every year forward to the Levy Court or a committee thereof his analysis as provided for in this act, with his certificate attached. He shall also forward at the same time and in the same manner the analysis of all samples analyzed under the provisions of Sections Three and Four of this act.
Section Eleven. That every manufacturer or vendor of fertilizer who is required to furnish to the State Chemist samples for analysis as provided in Section Three and Four of this act and failing so to do for a longer period than ten days after the time specified in Section Three and Four shall be subject to a penalty of fifty dollars, to be recovered before any Justice of the Peace in this State, one half of said penalty to go to the person informing and the other half to be paid into the State Treasure.
Section Twelfth. That every bag, barrel or other package, containing fertilizers manufactured or sold in this State, shall have stenciled upon it, or printed upon a tag securely attached, the percentage of phosphoric acid, ammonia and potash, and any manufacturer or vendor, who shall wilfully misrepresent the proportions of phosphoric acid, ammonia and potash, or either of them contained in such fertilizer selling or disposing any fertilizers, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof on indictment, shall be fined not exceeding two hundred dollars or imprisoned not exceeding six months, or both, at the discretion of the court. And persons acting as an agent in this State for any manufacturer or vendor of fertilizers residing outside of the State, 'shall be subject to the provisions of this act and the act to which this is an amendment.
Section Thirteen. It shall, be the duty of the Levy Court aforesaid, or a committee thereof, on the receipt of .the report of the State Chemist, as provided in section ten of this act, to have published in pamphlet form said report as follows: First; the report of the samples submitted by the manufacturer or vendor: Second, the samples submitted by the Levy Court or their committee of the same fertilizer, the fact to be ascertained by referring to the numbers in the record as provided in section ten of this act. And be it further enacted that the aforesaid Levy Court or a committee thereof, shall have, on or before the first day of August in each and every year, such publication ready for gratuitous distribution to any purchaser, consumer or user of fertilizer, who, may apply for the same. And be it further enacted that the Levy Court shall, in the month of October in each and every year, issue orders payable to the State Chemist for the analysis of all samples submitted by said court, or its committee, provided that the sum shall not exceed five dollars for any one sample, nor shall payment be made for more than one sample of any brand in the one and same year.
Section Fourteen. That the State Chemist shall make a report of the operations of his office to the Governor of the State
annually, giving the number of analyses made and the amount of proceeds of office ; said report to be presented to the Legislature at each session thereof, the same as the Auditor's and State Treasurer's reports are made.
Passed at Dover, April 8, 1881.