108 



is reserved l<> l»e i;iveii us l(»iiioi-r(»\\ iiKH-uiiiii, whelhei- I here is 

 iiiij (lata lo show wliat the expense is to cut out, remove and take 

 wp tlie iiifeeled ehestimt trees "wliere the Idi.nht. is IcnoAVU to be 

 M'oi-kin.ii'. 



i\Jl{. I. (\ W ILLiAMS: In answer to the gcnitlenian's (pies- 

 tion, 1 Avonld like to say that tlie Chestnut Jilight Connnis- 

 sion lias no data at hand whicli will answer him directly. The 

 work of the Commission has not l>een s|M'(ilicially directed to 

 cuttini;- out diseased trees, but has been in the direction of uri;- 

 ini:, ])ersons to do that. It has not been ])ossible to follow that 

 Avork sulTficiently closely to make an approximation of just what 

 that cost would be. The effort that is beini; made in Pennsyl- 

 vania will be more minutely described to-morrow mornini;;, and 

 I do nol feel that it would be fair to trespass seriously upon 

 that i)ai)er Hi is evenini:;-; but what evidence there is, and what 

 knoAvlednc we have; on that subject, will be laid before you in 

 the morniiiii in the first paper. 



Some; of the speakers this afternoon seemed lo be ulterly ap- 

 palled at the fact that Pennsylvania has thrown two hundred 

 and seventy-live lliousand dollars into a rathole. Now it may 

 be of interest to this meetini; at this lime to realize that the 

 whole Avork I bus far accomplished by this Commission has been 

 at an expense of twenty thousand one hundred and forty-three 

 dollars. That leaves a considerable mai-iiiii of the two hundred 

 and seventy-five thousand dollars upon which we are ])rivilei»ed 

 to ixo unlil ilie (irsl of June, l!l]:{. ( A|)i>lause). 



This Commission is built u])on business principles. It is not 

 beini; dashed about wildly, like a potato in a tub, not know- 

 ing- what it is doing or where it is going. It is trying to find 

 its way. It may be that it will get lost in the blighted chestnut 

 woods, l)ut we are going to make an honest endeavor to get out 

 of the Avoods, Every knoAvn method, and a lot of methods that 

 .are not known and about Avhich Ave heard a good deal this after- 

 noon, Avill be ti'ied. If there is any virtue in them, they Avill 

 be followed to a liiiality. If there is no virtue in them, Ave Avant, 

 the woi'ld to kuoAV it, — the sooner the better. The mere fact that 

 somebody belicA'cs that something cannot be done is going to 

 have mighty little Aveight in the Avork of this Commission, (Ap- 

 plause). We do not care a rap Avhat someone's belief is. If he 



