84 ANNUAL REPORT 



stitutional to put some check upon these scamps who are traveling 

 through the country selling worthless nursery stock, for they are 

 nothing more nor less than that. They should be made to take out a 

 license. Pack peddlers are required to pay a license, and why should 

 not the tree peddler? 



Mr. Dartt. I don't see as it can make any material difference just 

 now whether we are in favor of this law, or opposed to it; it cannot 

 be changed before another winter, and I don't know as there is any 

 use of our taking action in regard to it. We will have plenty of time 

 another winter, if we want it changed, to make an effort to get the 

 change made. I don't think I opposed the passage of the resolution 

 very much, or said very much in favor of it; but I think I did warn our 

 friends to be cautious, and not ask the legislature to pass a law they 

 did not want. First, to be sure that they wanted it before they asked 

 the legislature to pass it. I did so on the ground that this Society 

 ought to know better what the interests of the State required in this 

 regard than the legislature. I still think so, but it seems to me as 

 good a thing as we can do now is to lay the matter on the table. 



Mr. Thompson. I met one of these tree peddlers in Fayette county ,^ 

 Iowa, yesterday, on the train. He had one of your Minnesota licenses 

 in Iowa, in our prohibition state. [Laughter.] I thought it was 

 queer. He directed me to call on L. L. May when I came to St. Paul. 

 I informed him that we Grundy county farmers were acquainted with 

 that name, but I did not know whether his license was good or not; 

 we had a "prohibition law" in force, and I thought he would have a 

 fine time selling his trees. By the way, this same firm was operating 

 in our part of the country quite extensively a year ago last spring, and 

 if there was ever a set of farmers defrauded and robbed, it was our 

 Grrundy county farmers. A year ago this fall there was one set of 

 agents of L. L. May, and another set of commission men that repre- 

 sented the Chase Nursery, of Rochester, N. Y., that were operating 

 there to some extent. They bought their trees of Mr. Speer, of Cedar 

 Falls. They got two loads of trees that had been condemned by him, 

 and brought them to Grundy county. Some of the trees still had tags 

 on them. On inquiring of the man who drew them down, he said he 

 got them where Mr. Speer had piled them up intending to burn them, 

 and that they gave him $5 to draw the load of trees to Grundy Center, 

 which he did, thinking there was no harm in it; but when he returned 

 Mr. Speer discharged him. They had all manner of names for the 

 trees which they peddled out to our Grundy county men, but as good 

 luck would have it, not more than one in a hundred lived, so they 



