April 29. 1911 



HORTICULTURE^ 



633 



Legislative Insanity 



What causes all this insanity among our legislators? 

 Why this burning desire to hit the seedsmen with pro- 

 Jiibitory and impossible bills? The mania is not local. 

 It extends east, west, north and south. The two latest 

 are New York and Pennsylvania. Both of the latter 

 bills are enough to make the angels weep in the ignor- 

 ance and intolerance they exhibit. The drawers of these 

 bills not only don't know what they are talking about, 

 but they are forging weapons that are bound (if con- 

 summated) to do incalculable damage to the agricul- 

 tural interests of the country. 



There seems to be but one answer to the question : — 

 The desire on the part of these legislators to cater to 

 the farmer vote. The legislator says to himself: How 

 can I get myself "in good" with the farmer? The 

 answer is "Go" for someone who supplies the farmer 

 with something. Right or wrong does not matter. 

 ■"Go" for something furnished or somebody who fur- 

 nishes the fanner, and the farmers will all flock to you ! 



It has been suggested that Department oiBcials, State 

 and National, are back of it all; but we have too much 

 respect for the common sense of these men to give that 

 argument a moment's consideration. 



We are thoroughly convinced that the whole insanity 

 has its origin in the crude belief of legislators that they 

 must "get busy" for the fanner. 



In most of the bills as drawn there is a ludicrously 

 lame attempt to exempt the farmer and hit the seeds- 

 man. Section 4 of the Pennsylvania Bill is a conspicu- 

 ous instance of this. Now, how in the world can any 

 one tell where the farmer stops and the seedsman be- 

 gins? As a matter of fact there is no such distinction. 

 The seedsman is a farmer and the farmer is a seedsman. 

 The seed industry is but an auxiliary branch of the 

 farming industry. If you hit one you hit the other. 

 In their blind efforts to cater to the farmer by hitting 

 the seedsman they defeat their own object and make 

 themselves ridiculous in addition. 



As a sane and well tempered reply to an inquiry 

 ( from Harrisburg to a Philadelphia seedsman on the 

 pending bill) the points covered by the following brief 

 telegram are worthy of earnest consideration : — 



"Depends entirely what you mean by purity. 

 The Zurich test figures chafC and immature seeds 

 impurity. If this act goes into effect the farmers 

 of Pennsylvania will be unable to get seeds at any 

 price. You might as well try to stop the Al- 

 mighty giving us little eggs and little apples as 

 try to stop Him from giving us light seeds as well 

 as plump. An act of Legislature will not make 

 water run up hill. To my mind section four 

 makes the proposed act unconstitutional, as it 

 violates equality before the law — guaranteed to 

 all citizens." 



The point' for the seedsmen to observe, therefore, is 

 to make it absolutely clear, and spare no pains in driv- 

 ing this point home — and this point only — that the 

 farmer and the seedsman are one and indivisible. Don't 

 waste effort on details. Hit them (the legislators) on 

 the fundamental weak spot — that they are hurting in- 

 stead of helping the farmer ! 



Don't argue with the legislators about purity tests 

 and vitality tests. These are commercial matters, regu- 

 lated by price — the haggle of the market. Point out to 



them that the farmer and seedsman are absolutely one 

 and that they (the legislators) have everything to lose 

 and nothing to gain by monkeying with such a delicate 

 machine as seed producing with its innumerable uncon- 

 trollable conditions. 



Rubbish will generally show the highest vitality. 

 Some of the finest and most valuable strains of seeds 

 often show weak vitality. As a general rule the higher 

 the breeding the lower the vitality. The very finest 

 strains are ustially shy seeders and the seeds of same 

 are generally much lower in vitality than common rub- 

 bish. To establish arbitrary percentages is, consequent- 

 ly, the height of folly — and any legislator who pro- 

 poses such a thing should be confined for life, as a dan- 

 gerous maniac and a menace to the fundamental in- 

 dustrj- of the nation — Agriculture ! 



The Hyacinth Scare 



Editor Hokticultuee: 



There has been considerable discussion in the public 

 prints recently in connection with the statement attrib- 

 uted to the Superintendent of the Public Grounds De- 

 partment of Boston that the hyacinth is dangerous to 

 health as a poisonous bulb, and your editorial under the 

 caption, "Hyacinths Barred," in your last issue has led 

 me to say a few- words on this important subject. These 

 bulbs have been eliminated from the public gardens of 

 this city and the assertion is made that they are injuri- 

 ous to the face and hands as well as to the soil in which 

 they grow. An experience of some twenty years in 

 liandling hyacinths, however, has convinced me that the 

 liyacinth is not such a dangerous bulb as the public 

 have been led to believe and in this I am supported by 

 many of the greatest authorities on the physiology of 

 plants. Little, if any, definite knowledge is known of 

 the toxic effects of plants on soil but all agree that the 

 hyacinth has no more injurious effects on the soil than 

 other plants. Of course, without the replenishing of 

 food elements, any soil will in time become impover- 

 ished. 



The most tliat can be said against the hyacinth in its 

 relation to poison is that people handling the bulbs of 

 liyacinths are sometimes subject to an eczema which is 

 produced by the raphides in the plants but this does not 

 amount to poison as the alarmists would have us 

 believe, and different species of hyacinths vary some- 

 what in theii* irritating properties. 



I am intensely interested in this subject and think a 

 large amount of good would be accomplished if the 

 views of your numerous readers could be obtained upon 

 this question. To me it seems a great hardship that 

 the public should be debarred from enjoying the cultiva- 

 tion of these exquisite plants, whose fragrance and beau- 

 tiful shades of color are superior to any of the har- 

 bingers of spring. 



/C^c-'h^'ii-yu^ 



