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  perts 
  in 
  this 
  Department 
  ought 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  people's 
  information, 
  

   and 
  it 
  ought 
  to 
  be 
  possible 
  for 
  any 
  citizen 
  to 
  write 
  the 
  Depart- 
  

   ment 
  a 
  letter 
  about 
  any 
  proposition 
  that 
  he 
  has 
  received 
  from 
  

   any 
  of 
  these 
  various 
  promoters, 
  and 
  have 
  the 
  advice 
  of 
  those 
  

   who 
  know 
  most 
  about 
  it. 
  

  

  I 
  suppose 
  the 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  has 
  entirely 
  too 
  

   many 
  duties 
  to 
  perform 
  to 
  undertake 
  a 
  work 
  of 
  this 
  kind, 
  but 
  

   what 
  an 
  inconsistent 
  position 
  it 
  is 
  for 
  a 
  Member 
  of 
  Congress, 
  

   who 
  has 
  been 
  voting 
  for 
  appropriations 
  to 
  carry 
  on 
  this 
  work, 
  

   to 
  appeal 
  to 
  the 
  Secretary 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  to 
  suppress 
  such 
  infor- 
  

   mation 
  in 
  order 
  that 
  some 
  exploiter 
  may 
  get 
  somebody's 
  money 
  

   under 
  false 
  representations. 
  I 
  think 
  if 
  it 
  were 
  possible 
  today 
  to 
  

   know 
  the 
  list 
  of 
  concerns 
  and 
  companies 
  who 
  registered, 
  directly 
  

   or 
  through 
  agents, 
  their 
  opposition 
  to 
  this 
  proposed 
  warning 
  

   circular, 
  you 
  would 
  have 
  a 
  correct 
  index 
  of 
  the 
  concerns 
  good 
  

   to 
  let 
  alone. 
  For 
  no 
  honest, 
  reputable 
  individual 
  or 
  company 
  

   need 
  be 
  afraid 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  or 
  suggestions 
  of 
  that 
  great 
  Depart- 
  

   ment. 
  I 
  have 
  the 
  pleasure 
  of 
  knowing 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  officials 
  in 
  

   the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  Plant 
  Industry, 
  and 
  never 
  anywhere 
  have 
  I 
  seen 
  

   a 
  body 
  of 
  men 
  so 
  conscientiously 
  engaged 
  in 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  pro- 
  

   moting 
  legitimate 
  horticultural 
  and 
  agricultural 
  knowledge. 
  It 
  

   is 
  the 
  very 
  life 
  of 
  that 
  great 
  Department, 
  and 
  its 
  officers 
  and 
  

   employees 
  above 
  everyone 
  else 
  are 
  most 
  interested 
  in 
  seeing 
  

   the 
  land 
  produce 
  the 
  most 
  and 
  best 
  that 
  it 
  can 
  be 
  made 
  to 
  pro- 
  

   duce, 
  and 
  they 
  are 
  best 
  qualified 
  to 
  pass 
  upon 
  these 
  matters. 
  

  

  Most 
  of 
  the 
  questions 
  in 
  these 
  various 
  schemes 
  are 
  questions 
  

   of 
  soil 
  and 
  horticulture. 
  One 
  letter 
  in 
  opposition 
  to 
  the 
  Agri- 
  

   cultural 
  Department's 
  attitude, 
  that 
  was 
  brought 
  to 
  my 
  atten- 
  

   tion, 
  stated 
  that 
  crops 
  varied 
  under 
  different 
  conditions, 
  and 
  

   that 
  no 
  one 
  was 
  able 
  to 
  tell 
  what 
  a 
  certain 
  soil 
  would 
  or 
  would 
  

   not 
  produce 
  throughout 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  years, 
  and 
  intimated 
  that 
  

   the 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  might 
  mislead 
  the 
  public; 
  and 
  

   yet 
  the 
  concern 
  that 
  sent 
  it 
  printed 
  columns 
  of 
  figures 
  guaran- 
  

   teeing 
  returns 
  from 
  pecans 
  and 
  satsuma 
  oranges 
  in 
  a 
  section 
  

   where 
  orange 
  growing 
  is 
  of 
  very 
  doubtful 
  possibility. 
  Boiling 
  

   down 
  these 
  objections 
  by 
  the 
  promoters, 
  they 
  come 
  to 
  simply 
  

   this: 
  That 
  the 
  Agricultural 
  Department, 
  with 
  no 
  motive 
  but 
  

   to 
  tell 
  the 
  truth, 
  and 
  with 
  its 
  corps 
  of 
  trained 
  experts, 
  might 
  

   mislead 
  the 
  public, 
  but 
  they 
  (the 
  promoters) 
  could 
  not 
  possibly 
  

   be 
  mistaken 
  in 
  their 
  fabulous 
  figures 
  compiled 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  

   of 
  getting 
  money 
  from 
  some 
  misinformed 
  victim. 
  

  

  Proxy 
  farming 
  never 
  was 
  a 
  success 
  and 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  think 
  it 
  ever 
  

  

  