S2 ANNUAL EEPORT 



peace," for this small offense does seem rather hard. In conclusion 

 (as last years' wheat crop was a light one) I will suggest to the farm- 

 ers who have been so grossl}^ defrauded by Tree Dealers (mind you I 

 do not say Tree Peddlers, as they are a far more respectable class) to 

 come out as did the patriot of old and say: "Let the wheat lay and 

 rot on the held where it grows, and the reaping of wheat for the reap- 

 ing of foes." 



DISCUSSION. 



Mr. Pearce moved that the paper be filed for publication, which 

 motion was carried. 



Mr. Gould. Mr. President, I am one of the number that opposed 

 the enactment of a bill of this character a )''ear ago, and I have not 

 changed my mind in that respect as yet; and with all due respect for 

 all that was said upon this subject at that time, I must say in all 

 candor and sincerity that the whole thing in my opinion is a mistake. 

 Without passing any reflections upon the integrity and good inten- 

 tions of those who took action in the matter, I would say now. after 

 having had some experience in the nursery and tree business — I am 

 out of that business at present — that I think there ought to be an 

 amendment to that bill. Every tree peddler, every man who offers a 

 fruit tree for sale, in connection with the offer should say to the per- 

 son to whom he offers the tree that he don't have any faith in it that 

 it will ever bear fruit, as for thirty years the effort to grow fruit has 

 proved a failure. I think that is a fact; the trees that survive are 

 very few. Of course we don't expect to raise cherries and peaches, 

 nothing of that kind; but apples — I am speaking of the hardiest kind 

 of fruit trees — apple trees. And I believe that after this winter of 

 1887-8, the trees that will be alive that bear apples will be very few 

 and far between. 



Mr. Pearce. They will be good ones, though. Mr. President, when 

 this proposed enactment of a law in regard to the sale of nu'-sery 

 stock was under consideration, as you remember, I was opposed to it 

 all the way through. It is well known that I don't believe in peddling 

 fruit trees of any description in Minnesota. I think that after the 

 millions of dollars of money that have been wasted in Minnesota, it is 

 almost equal to robbery for a man to go out and sell fruit trees in the 

 way that they are generally sold, as has been the custom here for at 

 least thirty years, to my own personal knowledge. I am perfectly 

 willing that everybody who desires should set out fruit trees; that 

 • they should be grown everywhere in the State; and if anybody wants 



