[originaltext] Today we will continue our examination of the growth of the c

Today we will continue our examination of the growth of the consumer protection cause in this country with the beginning of federal government regulation of the food industry. As you will recall, after the Civil War, powerful business interests had developed monopolies known as trusts. These trusts, as a result of their monopoly position in their industries, had little regard of the welfare of their consumers.
    The first step in consumer protection came in 1906 in the food sector. In that year, a sensational novel titled The Jungle was written by an activist named Upton Sinclair for the purpose of exposing the horrific lives of workers in one such trust, the Chicago meat packing industry. In his book, Sinclair described in vivid detail the unsanitary practices of the large slaughter and packing houses at that time. The unintended effect of the book was to move the public to protest against the tainted food products that they were being sold. As a result, President Teddy Roosevelt formed a special investigating commission to investigate the conditions described in the novel. The commission’s report was even more sickening than the novel, telling about dead rats, splinters, rope ends, etc. that were swept up and sold as potted ham.
    As a result of the report and angry public, the President pushed the Meat Inspection Act through Congress. It required federal inspection from the start of processing to the shipment of the prepared meat for sale over state lines.
    A further act intended to prevent the intermixing and/or mislabeling of foods and drugs known as the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 was also passed. Next week we will continue this examination of the consumer protection cause up to Ralph Nader’s entrance onto the scene as a powerful consumer advocate.
Q. 23. What’s the lecture about?
Q. 24.What was the problem with the trust?
Q. 25.Why did Upton Sinclair write the novel The Jungle?
Q. 26.What was the main result of the commission’s report?