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480 AGRICULTURAL APPROPRIATION BILL, 1924. 



Doctor Marlatt. This work of port inspection involves all the 

 United States, but the cost as to California and Florida is borne 

 by those States. California is spendin<r al)out S 100.000 in port 

 inspection work, and tiie Federal Government gets full advantage 

 of it by using the CaHfornia men. FU)rida is spending about one-half 

 as much as that in protecting her various ports, and again we get 

 full advantage of lier work in the same way. These expenditures 

 indicate the importance which these States attach to that sort of 

 protection. They do it on account of their great fruit interests, 

 which are, perhaps, the OTe'atest in the world — certainly, those of 

 California. Other States nave not the same reasons for port inspec- ^ 

 tion in an immediate menace to fruit or nursery interests, or at least \ 

 do not realize it in the same way. The result is that few of the other 

 States arc doing much, if anything, in that sort of work, and the 

 Federal Government is carrying out most of the port inspection work 

 that is being done outside of (California and Florida. We are not 

 covering the gi'ound by any means. We cover certain Pacific ports 

 north of California, New Orleans, and in connection with the pink 

 boll worm, some of the Gulf ports of Texas and the Mexican border 

 ports. We cover also the principal northern ports, such as Boston, 

 New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. We have one man at 

 Philadelphia, and one at Baltimore. The work is undermanned, 

 and the men are working overtime, frequently 12 or more hours per 

 (lay. They are enthusiastic young fellows and they are able to to 

 do it. It is hard work for them, and we ought to liave more men. 

 They realize the responsibility of their jobs and are trying to keep 

 plant pests out of the country. 



As an illustration of the value of this work I want to tell you of an 

 inspection incident that happened last spring. A gentleman return- 

 ing from Brazil, through the port of Baltimore, brought with his 

 Eersonal baggage among other things a- small box. Fortunately, we 

 ad a man at Baltimore, and the box was opened and found to contain 

 a lot of small plants and wood specimens and some 59 packages of 

 seed cotton an(l cotton seed. Practically every one of those packages 

 contained living pink bollworm larva?. This man's purpose was to | 



take these packages of cotton seed to his home in Mississippi for 

 distribution and ])lanting. The carrying out of his purpose — it would 

 have been carried out if it had not been for the department's in- _ 



spector — would have caused a vast loss to the cotton crop of the i 



South through the introduction of the pink bollworm. It would 



frobably have amounted to hundreds of millions of dollars, and when 

 say hundreds of millions of dollars 1 mean two or three hundred 

 million dollars annually. That would have been the cost to the 

 cotton crop of the South. We have many other eciually typical 

 cases. We are intercepting that sort of thing all the time. At norts 

 like New Orleans, where many interceptions are made, mid wiiere, 

 on account of the favorable climate the danger of establishment of 

 new pests is great, the inspectors go through the passengers' baggage 

 and examine it along with the examination of tne customs service. 

 Examination is also made of the storeroom on the ship, where the 

 .ship's stores are kept, and of the pei-sonal ellects of the crew. Various 

 fruits and vegetables are often found, and in them fniit (lies and other 

 pests. Such suj)i)lies and stores nuist be promptly destroved, and 

 Kometimes it is nece.ssary to disinfect the ships. Tliis work "does not 



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